Rep. Mejia Slams Supreme Court’s Decision to Restrict Access to Asylum and Allow the Termination of Temporary Protected Status

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Analilia Mejia (NJ-11), member of Homeland Security Committee and Border Security and Enforcement Subcommittee, released the following statement slamming the Supreme Court’s decision to restrict access to asylum and allow the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS):

“Today's decisions handed the Trump administration sweeping new power to strip away constitutional protections and throw hundreds of thousands of lives into uncertainty. Whether denying asylum seekers the chance to be heard or ripping Temporary Protected Status away from families who have spent years building their lives in this country, this corrupt Court, beholden to an authoritarian-like President, once again chose politics over the Constitution.

The 14th Amendment promises due process and equal protection under the law. Those rights do not disappear because a President decides an entire community has become politically convenient to target. Families followed the law, renewed their status, raised children, built businesses, paid taxes, and contributed to communities across this country. Asylum seekers deserve the opportunity to have their claims heard before the government decides their fate. Above all else, this case is simply cruel and denies humanity to our fellow human beings seeking safety.

These rulings should alarm every American. When the government can deny one group a hearing or strip away protections they have relied on for years, it is not just immigrants who lose. It sends a dangerous message that constitutional rights can be discarded whenever those in power find it politically useful. This Court may have failed today, but our fight for dignity, humanity, and justice cannot.  We must continue fighting until the promises of the 14th Amendment belong to everyone, not just those in power.”

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