President Joe Biden spoke Tuesday at the White House before signing an executive order that would temporarily halt asylum requests at the U.S.-Mexico border once the daily arrival rate surpasses 2,500 migrants.
”The simple truth is there is a worldwide migrant crisis,” said Biden.
The order, which comes under the Immigration and Nationality Act, aims to address the migrant influx by suspending entry for those crossing the border unlawfully. The shutdown will be immediate, given the current numbers, and the border will reopen when the figures drop below 1,500 a day.
However, reactions from immigration organizations have been critical. Silky Shah, Executive Director of Detention Watch Network, expressed fury at the order, calling it a betrayal of the values President Biden once promised. She accused the administration of adopting an anti-immigration agenda by enacting policies that endanger migrants and align with right-wing ideologies.
The order, Shah argued, not only narrows pathways for immigrants but cuts them off entirely, perpetuating a system that relies on mass incarceration and targets people of color.
Click play to listen to the report from AURN White House Correspondent Ebony McMorris. For more news, follow @E_N_McMorris & @aurnonline.
