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Chicago, IL — “Alianza Americas is dismayed that a White House scheme to cut off asylum claims is the latest attack on human rights that would endanger the lives of asylum seekers. We fear that Biden and some of his immigration policy advisers are lurching right towards an inhumane policy that former President Trump had embraced,” said Oscar Chacón,  executive director at Alianza Americas. “Sadly, Republican and Democratic leaders are once again using the lives of men, women, and children as pawns that can be sacrificed for political support in this election year,” Chacón added.

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“For immigrant communities, these are not new attacks, nor are we surprised that these types of policy proposals and actions, which have originated within Republican congressional circles, are being adopted by the White House,” said Carolina Ortiz, associate executive director at COPAL in Minnesota, and an Alianza Americas board member. “For the past forty years we have witnessed the devastating impacts of these inhumane laws, separating families, exposing migrants to torturous conditions, thousands of lives lost, and causing much pain,” concluded Ortiz.

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In recent hours, media outlets have reported that the Biden-Harris Administration is considering an executive action that could prevent asylum seekers from entering the country. According to the information cited in the reports, the measure would suspend long-standing guarantees that give anyone on U.S. soil the right to seek asylum. Alianza Americas, a network of more than 50 organizations leading and working for immigrant communities of Latin American and Caribbean origin in the United States, rejects any measures to further erode the human right to seek asylum.

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“Profit-making from the dehumanization of migrants has historically been a leading driver for ultra-conservative forces that influence discourse, laws, and social dynamics, while wielding unjust laws to demonize us. It is clear to us that when it comes to immigrants and immigration policy, both political parties continue to fail the nation when it comes to passing truly wise, humane, and visionary policies that recognize the immense contributions immigrant communities make to the U.S. and their countries of origin,” concluded Chacón.

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Alianza Americas is the premier transnational advocacy network of Latin American migrant-led organizations working in the United States, across the Americas, and globally to create an inclusive, equitable and sustainable way of life for communities across North, Central and South America.