from First Church UCC Phoenix:
None of us knew what to expect after President Biden issued an executive order on June 4 allowing Border Patrol agents to shut down all asylum processing when the number of migrant crossings in between ports of entry exceeded 2,500 per day over a 7-day period. Those of us who volunteer at the Welcome Center and Pastor Martha's knew that the number of arrivals at both shelters had been dropping for some time, due to the greater presence of the Mexican government on the southern side of our border, but what would this new U.S. government policy mean?
What happened after June 4 is that arrivals stopped. The last asylum-seekers arrived at the Welcome Center on Thursday, June 6; Pastor Martha’s shelter, Helping With All My Heart, received a bus of 60 asylum-seekers on Friday, June 7, and a bus of 30 asylum-seekers released from detention last Wednesday, but none since.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) which manages the Welcome Center isn’t sure what to expect in the weeks and months ahead.
The ACLU, the National Immigrant Justice Center and several other groups filed a federal lawsuit last week, challenging the new policy. These groups say that the majority of migrants arriving at the border will not have the ability to apply for asylum, a right guaranteed through international and U.S. law. We hear, in fact, that those crossing between ports of entry and approaching Border Patrol agents are “being summarily ignored and deported to Mexico,” according to an official with the Kino Border Initiative.
For now, until the courts issue their rulings, migrants who are attempting to claim asylum must obtain an appointment to enter the U.S. through a port of entry. Appointments are available through a relatively new program called the CBP One app. Originally, just 1000 appointments were available each day; recently, the number was increased to 1500. In Arizona, the only port of entry accepting immigrants with appointments is Nogales. Each day, Nogales is able to process 100 people, but it is unclear where they travel from there.
What this means for First Church is that our volunteers are not needed at the Welcome Center or Pastor Martha’s, at least for now. That could change at any time, of course, and the Welcome Center is organizing building improvement projects that will require volunteers — so stay tuned!
DONATION ITEMS NEEDED:
Jeans • Lightweight Jackets • Shoes • Socks • Caps • Underwear
Donations are still being accepted at the Welcome Center; please leave your items in the bin at the front of the sanctuary on any Sunday. The Kino Border Initiative has picked up donations from the Welcome Center to take directly to the border for people in need, and we hope that will continue.
First Church has a long history of advocacy on immigration issues, and that won’t change. We have a critical role now in telling our truths about the immigrants we’ve met at the Welcome Center, at Pastor Martha’s or in our daily lives.
There is no doubt that politics has caused the rollout of these new policies, but there is an election coming and we have another role — push back when candidates prey on our emotions to make us fear “the other,” and vote, instead, for candidates who are committed to passing reforms that will bring order to our immigration systems, meet our economic needs, and honor the humanity of all peoples attempting to flee violence and persecution in their home countries.