How the Asylum Backlog Affects Torture Survivors and What the Biden Administration Can Do to Fix It

One largely unseen family separation crisis that exploded during the Trump presidency was the prolonged separation of family members abroad from family members in the U.S. seeking asylum. This crisis was due to drastic changes made to the asylum process at a time when the backlog for affirmative asylum applications was skyrocketing. The administration swapped the “first-in, first-out” policy, which prioritized asylum seekers who were already in the country for years and had likely built a life here, for a “last-in, first-out policy,” where “[new] asylum seekers could be easily removed and deported before building viable links to this country.” The article “How the Asylum Backlog Affects Torture Survivors and What the Biden Administration Can Do to Fix It,” published by the Center for Migration Studies, offers suggestions for the new administration to deal with this backlog, as well as personal narratives and cases that paint a vivid picture of who these asylum seekers, many torture survivors, and their families are. The article suggests not only that the first-in, first-out policy be reinstated, but also that more resources, including asylum officers and immigration judges, are necessary “to combat the growing backlog, to reduce human rights abuses at the border, and to facilitate an orderly and just asylum process.” The article further states that many asylum seekers were essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, serving as health care workers, delivery persons, and farm and meat plant workers, and the author argues that “[t]heir commitment to the United States is deserving of our esteem and gratitude.” (Denzil Mohammed for The Immigrant Learning Center’s Public Education Institute)

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