The National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) issued the following statement after the Trump administration announced a series of discriminatory policies last week following the deadly shooting of National Guard troops in Washington, DC.
These policies include an indefinite halt on all asylum decisions, the review of all Afghan applications and grants since 2021, and discriminatory targeting of green card applicants from 19 countries.
“The Trump administration is using the tragic shooting of two National Guard members to scapegoat and roll out yet another ban on Black and Brown migrants. Where there is grief and heartbreak, the Trump administration sees opportunity—i.e., the opportunity to unveil more racist and anti-immigrant policies. There is no excuse for demonizing entire nationalities for the act of one individual. But we expect no less from an administration that dehumanizes immigrants at every turn, separates families daily, and abducts people from our communities based on racial profiling.
“During the 20 years in which the United States maintained a presence in Afghanistan, tens of thousands of Afghan people supported the U.S. military, worked to rebuild the country and to create and maintain a democratically elected government, or advocated for equal rights for women and ethnic and religious minorities. In recognition of those efforts and the danger these people would face from the Taliban, the U.S. government implemented Operation Allies Welcome to conduct extensive background screenings of Afghan people fleeing the Taliban and then promptly resettle them in the United States. Thousands of Afghans, many of whom NIJC has been proud to serve, have made a home in the United States since then, strengthening our collective communities and economy. Following last week’s event, many now fear that the stability and peace they achieved here is endangered once again, as the executive branch threatens to upend family reunifications and engage in a discriminatory review that threatens to turn our nation’s back on an entire community.
“The Trump administration is also ushering in two new policies that also betray discriminatory animus. Following Trump’s racist call to end migration from ‘Third World countries,’ the executive branch has announced it will halt all decisions on asylum cases and review the green card applications of 19 countries already vilified under Trump’s travel ban. Neither of these policies are responsive to the tragic events of last week. These actions will put countless individuals and families in limbo and jeopardize their right to due process and protection under U.S. and international law. Once more, the Trump administration knows no limits to its anti-asylum and anti-immigrant campaign, especially when targeting Black and Brown people.”