Immigrants from Mexico seeking asylum in the United States will no longer “be released” into the US following an historic announcement from United States Secretary of Homeland Security, Kirstjen Nielsen, Thursday morning.
Effective immediately, “individuals arriving in or entering the United States from Mexico — illegally or without proper documentation — may be returned to Mexico for the duration of their immigration proceedings,” Nielsen wrote in a statement.
You can read the full statement from Secretary Nielsen HERE.
“Today we are announcing historic measures to bring the illegal immigration crisis under control,” Secretary Nielsen said. “We will confront this crisis head on, uphold the rule of law, and strengthen our humanitarian commitments. Aliens trying to game the system to get into our country illegally will no longer be able to disappear into the United States, where many skip their court dates. Instead, they will wait for an immigration court decision while they are in Mexico.”
To implement this change, the United States invoked Section 235(b)(2)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Mexican immigrants wishing to enter the US under asylum will be sent back to Mexico, according to Nielsen’s press statement.
“While they wait in Mexico, the Mexican government has made its own determination to provide such individuals humanitarian visas, work authorization, and other protections,” Nielsen wrote. “Aliens will have access to immigration attorneys and to the U.S. for their court hearings.”
With the new declaration, Nielsen hopes “more attention can be focused on more quickly assisting legitimate asylum-seekers.”
“Aliens whose claims are upheld by U.S. judges will be allowed in,” the press statement says. "Those without valid claims will be deported to their home countries.”
