WASHINGTON — Immigrants’ rights advocates sued the Trump administration today over the president’s recent proclamation aimed at completely shutting down asylum at the border, a move that puts thousands of lives at risk.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, ACLU, ACLU of the District of Columbia, National Immigrant Justice Center, Texas Civil Rights Project, and the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies (CGRS), filed the federal lawsuit on behalf of Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center, the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES), and the Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project, which provide legal services to people seeking asylum but would be unable to do so under this proclamation.
Under the “212(f)” proclamation, which falsely cites an “invasion” as justification to deny asylum protections expressly granted by Congress, families and individuals face return to countries where they are at grave risk of persecution with no recourse.
Trump’s action ignores protections put in place by Congress and backed by the courts for generations that ensure people have a chance to have their asylum claims heard. This proclamation also differs from Trump’s previous attempts to shut off asylum in his first administration because the recent move leaves no avenue open for people to seek asylum, even if they present themselves at a port of entry.
“This is an unprecedented power grab that will put countless lives in danger,” said Lee Gelernt, deputy director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project. “No president has the authority to unilaterally override the protections Congress has afforded those fleeing danger.”
“The United States has long served as a refuge for people fleeing persecution abroad, as we declare proudly on the Statue of Liberty,” said Scott Michelman, legal director at the ACLU of the District of Columbia. “Trump’s attempted border shutdown is an affront to our history and our values, and it will impose incalculable suffering on refugees fleeing for their lives.”
“This is the latest flagrantly illegal attempt by the executive branch to end humanitarian protection at the U.S.-Mexico border,” said Richard Caldarone, senior litigation attorney at the National Immigrant Justice Center. “The immigration laws do not give the president autocratic power to override Congress and brazenly violate U.S. treaty obligations related to the protection of refugees. This latest attempt to do so will make thousands of people vulnerable to persecution, torture, and death, and we will not stop fighting until all those who require protection have the opportunity guaranteed by U.S. law to seek asylum in this country.”
“President Trump’s directive to suspend asylum entirely is extreme, unjust, and a disservice to families seeking safety at our southern border,” said Rochelle Garza, president of the Texas Civil Rights Project. “Denying migrants and displaced individuals from the opportunity to find safety undermines our nation’s values and creates additional strain on our already burdened border communities. Our lawsuit underscores the unlawful nature of this policy and emphasizes the need to protect asylum seekers’ rights. The U.S. should lead by example in implementing fair immigration practices and treating the most vulnerable with dignity.
“Once again, the Trump administration wants to eliminate the ability of families to seek safety in our country in the form of asylum, a legal pathway,” said Jennifer Babaie, director of advocacy and legal services at Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center. “Regardless of any person's individual beliefs on immigration, any government attempt to blatantly violate our laws is a serious issue impacting all communities across the country. Spreading falsehoods about an ‘invasion’ at our border only fuels fear, aiming to dismantle the entire asylum process and weaponize our immigration laws. At Las Americas, we take our role of welcoming seriously and are committed to protecting it. We will not stand idly by as our immigration laws are manipulated.
“The Florence Project is committed to serving people who are coming to the United States in need of protection, but President Trump’s proclamation making asylum unavailable makes our work much more difficult, and in some instances virtually impossible,” said Laura St. John, legal director at the Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project. “The Florence Project is proud to challenge this unprecedented and illegal overreach, so that our present and future clients who are in need of protection in this country may have an opportunity to seek that relief.”
“Just as he did in his first term, the president is attempting to rewrite our laws by executive fiat and impose an illegal policy of mass expulsions,” said Melissa Crow, director of litigation at the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies (CGRS). “This time around, his administration has fully embraced racist conspiracy theories, declaring that families, children, and adults seeking safety somehow constitute a hostile ‘invasion.’ The administration cannot use this lie as justification to circumvent our laws, which allow people in the United States or arriving at the southern border to seek asylum and prohibit our government from returning refugees to countries where they face persecution or torture.”
“The Trump administration is true to its original form and using racist pretext as a means to further the president’s cowardly xenophobic agenda. In President Trump and Stephen Miller’s dystopian vision for the U.S., no one is safe from the devastating wreckage of their cruelty, and it’s the American people who stand to suffer the most if we do not intervene in opposition to such incendiary and isolationist policies,” said Javier Hidalgo, legal director at RAICES. “At RAICES, we maintain that checks on abuse of power are an essential function of our judicial branch, and we promise to use every legal tool to hold this administration accountable for fulfilling our nation’s commitments to asylum and refugee protections.”
The case was filed in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.
Access the complaint online here: https://www.aclutx.org/sites/default/files/2025.02.03.0001-complaint-raices-v.-noem.pdf
