Durbin Statement on Termination of Cruel "Remain in Mexico" Policy

CHICAGO – U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement after Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Mayorkas announced the termination of the former administration’s Remain in Mexico policy.  Under the Trump Administration, the policy—deceptively named Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP)—blocked vulnerable asylum seekers from being in the U.S. while they awaited immigration court hearings, forcing them to wait in dangerous places in Mexico for extended periods of time and subjecting many asylum seekers to kidnapping, torture, rape, and assault.

“Donald Trump’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy placed innocent asylum seekers in danger of assault, rape, and kidnapping.  Americans could not continue to ignore or approve this grim reality.

“By ending this unjust policy, the Biden Administration is taking steps to restore our nation’s status as a global leader in protecting refugees while strengthening our immigration system.”

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