U.S President Biden has been on a mission to get Mexico to accept migrants under COVID-19 expulsion that he made a promise to terminate. As the number of migrants entering through the U.S./Mexico border has skyrocketed, the President’s administration has been urging Mexico to take migrants in from Cuba, Nicaragua, as well as Venezuela under the COVID expulsion order, referred to as Title 42. This health order that was previously issued in 2020 under the former President Donald Trump allows for the U.S. border authorities to expel migrants to countries without being given the chance to apply for U.S. asylum in order to protect against the spread of the pandemic. Even though White House has publicly promised to suspend this expulsion order as it is “no longer necessary”, President Biden is still pressuring Mexico along with other nations to accept and accommodate migrants.
President Biden’s objective is puzzling as he is fighting for the policy’s termination while trying to expand expulsions under the same order. Many argue that there should be more focus and emphasis on improving the asylum system in the United States as opposed to pressuring neighboring nations to take in migrants. In addition, immigrant advocates that have denounced Title 42 also agree that it prohibits asylum seekers from applying for humanitarian protection in the United States. Instead of assisting migrants in assimilating in the United States and helping them obtain asylum, the President is quietly pressuring other countries to accept them, which is unfair as it prohibits them from finding a pathway to citizenship in the U.S.
