Immigration Equality Denounces the Biden Administration’s Expanded Use of Title 42, Supports Parole Program for Venezuelan Migrants

New York, NY (October 14, 2022)—The Biden administration announced yesterday it will extend humanitarian parole to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants who arrive at U.S. airports. At the same time, Venezuelan migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border by land will be immediately returned to Mexico under Title 42—amounting to a potentially significant expansion to the Trump-era policy.

Statement from Immigration Equality’s Executive Director, Aaron C. Morris:

“While Immigration Equality supports the Biden administration’s decision to extend parole to certain Venezuelan migrants, we strongly oppose the continued illegal misuse of Title 42 to exclude asylum seekers from asking for protection at the southern border.

“For more than 25 years, Immigration Equality has represented hundreds of LGBTQ people from Central and South America who were forced to flee to the U.S. to escape persecution and torture. And, because they have remarkably strong human rights claims, 99% of our Latinx clients have been granted asylum by the U.S. government. As such, it is unconscionable to prevent them from even asking for protection under the false premise that doing so is necessary because of COVID-19.

“Title 42 is a public health law, not a border management mechanism. Creating additional pathways for migrants to obtain permission to come to the U.S. is a laudable, but shunning refugees at our nation’s very doorstep is shameful.”