CV NEWS FEED // The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has issued a statement signed by Bishop Mark Seitz of the Diocese of El Paso, Texas, criticizing President Joe Biden’s recent proclamation restricting asylum access at the U.S.-Mexico border.
“There is a crisis of conscience at the U.S.-Mexico border,” stated Bishop Seitz, who is chairman of the Committee on Migration for the USCCB, in a June 4 USCCB news release.
“When vulnerable families seeking safety and the means for a dignified life are labeled ‘invaders’ or ‘illegals’, terms that mask their humanity, we have strayed from the path of righteousness, succumbed to our fear of the ‘other’, and forsaken the values upon which our nation was founded,” he wrote.
On June 4 Biden announced that he is restricting asylum access at the border through a proclamation that, according to the USCCB news release, conflicts with the Refugee Act of 1980.
The news release highlighted that this Act “established a formal system for refugee and asylum protection, incorporating into domestic law the international principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits countries from returning persons to countries where they face irreparable harm, such as persecution or torture.”
The Associated Press News reported that the restrictions will go into effect when “border encounters between ports of entry hits 2,500 per day, according to senior administration officials.”
Bishop Seitz criticized the new regulations, stating: “Imposing arbitrary limits on asylum access and curtailing due process will only empower and embolden those who seek to exploit the most vulnerable. These measures will not sustainably reduce the increased levels of forced migration seen worldwide.”
He also highlighted that countries do have a “right and responsibility to maintain its borders and regulate immigration in furtherance of the common good.”
“Nevertheless, as defenders of human life and dignity, which we hold sacred and inviolable from the moment of conception, we cannot accept unjust conditions on the right to migrate for those fleeing life-threatening situations,” he continued.
Bishop Seitz also addressed concerns about crime and human trafficking at the border.
“For those concerned about violent gangs, drug smugglers, and human traffickers, we join you in opposing those evildoers,” he wrote. “At the same time, we ask: What fate awaits the families who flee for their lives from the same predatory actors, only to be returned to their grasp once they reach our borders?”
He concluded that the USCCB “strongly urge the President to reverse course and recommit his administration to policies that respect the human life and dignity of migrants, both within and beyond our borders.”
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