TAKE ACTION: Keep Asylum Accessible for Immigrant Survivors of Violence

On December 19, 2019, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released yet another proposed rule, Procedures for Asylum and Bars to Asylum Eligibility, that will deprive many immigrant survivors of domestic, sexual, and other forms of gender-based violence of the ability to seek asylum protections.

Speak out against this harmful proposed asylum eligibility bar rule!

Submit your comment telling the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to rescind the proposed rule that would restrict many immigrant survivors of violence from accessing safety. You have until January 21 to raise your voice on behalf of survivors and submit your comment.

WHAT WOULD THE PROPOSED RULE DO?

In the proposed rule, the administration proposes to make three primary changes to the asylum process and asylum eligibility:

  • Establish seven new bars to asylum. Individuals would be ineligible to seek asylum if they are convicted of 1) a felony offense; 2) “smuggling or harboring” under 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a); 3) illegal reentry under 8 U.S.C. § 1326; 4) an offense involving “criminal street gangs”; 5) a second offense of driving while intoxicated or impaired; 6) conviction or accusation of conduct of acts of battery or extreme cruelty in the domestic context; and 7) certain newly defined misdemeanor offenses.

  • Authorize immigration adjudicators to determine whether a conviction or conduct - in the case of battery and extreme cruelty - triggers these bars to eligibility.

  • Removes reconsideration of discretionary denials of asylum.

These proposed changes will unfairly prevent many immigrant survivors who have fled horrific violence to seek safety in the U.S. from obtaining the asylum protections they need and deserve.

HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR COMMENT & COMMENT TEMPLATES

AIS and our allies have developed sample comment templates for you to use in drafting your comment. It's important to generate as many unique comments as possible, so please modify the following comment templates to reflect your thoughts and your agency's perspective.

  • AIS Co-Chair, API-GBV, has developed a comment template specific to domestic violence and sexual assault survivors, designed to help advocates write comments unique to the experiences and stories of your agencies and survivors.

  • The National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) and the National Immigration Project have created a comment template for organizations and individuals looking to submit a detailed comment in opposition. This template includes eight sections from which you can pick and choose, modifying them and/or adding whenever possible to create a unique comment.

Our allies, the Immigrant Justice Network and NIJC, have developed additional resources that provide more information about the proposed rule.

  • A simple guide to taking action on the rule online here, particularly useful for organizations looking to engage individual members or supporters in the comment process.

  • A set of useful Talking Points on the proposed rule is available here.

How to submit your comment:

  • Visit the government's Regulations page here. Click on the blue "Comment Now!" button and copy/paste your comments in the large textbox or upload your comments as a PDF.

  • Remember: It is important that you submit comments in opposition to the rule that are as unique as possible by reflecting on the impact of the rule on the population you serve and your agency's mission, values, and concerns.

  • Ideally, you will be able to submit unique comments, but if you don’t have the time, please still take the time to weigh-in in opposition to the proposed rule and explain that the rule will harm survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking and other forms of gender-based violence. 

Instead of restricting access to asylum and protection for immigrant survivors of violence, the administration should promote policies that account for the dire reality that traumatized refugees face and seek to maximize their safety throughout the asylum process.

ORGANIZATIONAL COMMENTS