In the News

In December, Barragan and fellow California Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D) were caged together overnight with a group of 15 asylum seekers at the Otay Mesa port of entry near San Diego in order to observe how detained migrants are treated when attempting to claim asylum. CBP agents told the representatives repeatedly that their group could not be processed that day due to “capacity issues,” but would not provide proof to support that claim. The group was eventually processed the next day. According to Barragan and Gomez, CBP agents routinely gave them a hard time throughout the process, making snide comments and jokes at the expense of the asylum seekers. “And then we wonder why asylum seekers are not treated with dignity and respect,” Barragan tweeted. “It makes me sick.” U.S. asylum law states that any person “physically present in the United States or who arrives in the United States (whether or not at a designated port of arrival and including an alien who is brought to the United States after having been interdicted in international or United States waters), irrespective of such alien’s status, may apply for asylum.” In spite of this, migrants are routinely turned away, told to come back a different time, or told to travel to a separate port of entry to apply for asylum elsewhere. The Trump administration has implemented a process of “metering” asylum applications at the border, letting in only a small number of migrants in each day, despite the fact that denying individuals the right to apply for asylum is major violation of international human rights.

Full Article