Asylum-seekers at our country’s southern border are facing inhumane treatment, administrative barriers, and months-long wait times in pursuing asylum claims. Though temporarily halted by a federal judge, the administration is also trying to ban asylum applications from anyone entering the country from outside legal ports of entry. Last week, Border Patrol agents fired tear gas at those who were protesting the dangerous delays in asylum claim processing. Families who cross the border are being incarcerated and held in unsafe, abusive conditions. Dignity and human rights are being violated and the country is turning away people who have come seeking safety and refuge.
Congress must decide by December 21, 2018 how to fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for the rest of fiscal year 2019. Right now is a critical time for people of faith to make our voices heard and to demand the humane treatment of all asylum-seekers. No additional money should go to fund the detainment of immigrants or to fund the current practices of border enforcement that undermine the rights and safety of asylum-seekers and migrants.
Call your Members of Congress today to demand that they reduce harmful and reckless immigration enforcement funding and reject any DHS funding above FY18 enacted levels.
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