The Biden administration made an announcement on Wednesday stating that it would grant temporary legal status to over 470,000 Venezuelan migrants in the United States. This decision comes as U.S. authorities face challenges in dealing with a recent surge of border crossings in Texas, which has overwhelmed their capacity to hold migrants.
According to Biden officials, Venezuelans who entered the United States before July 31 will be eligible for temporary protected status. This designation will protect them from deportation and expedite the process of obtaining work permits. Officials in cities like New York and Chicago, where migrant populations have strained resources, have been urging the Biden administration to speed up the issuance of work permits to help newcomers become self-sufficient.
Over 6 million Venezuelans have left their country due to political and economic turmoil. Since 2021, around 500,000 Venezuelans have been apprehended at the U.S. border, making it the largest migration wave from Venezuela in U.S. history.
Temporary protected status offers individuals already in the United States protection from removal when their home country conditions prevent safe return. The designation lasts for 18 months and can be renewed by the Department of Homeland Security. However, some Republican critics argue that this expanded use of temporary protected status incentivizes illegal crossings.
Approximately 243,000 Venezuelans already have temporary legal status through a previous designation. The new protection will cover an additional 472,000 Venezuelans, including those who arrived prior to August through Biden’s use of an immigration authority known as parole.
Democratic lawmakers and New York City mayor Eric Adams have been pressuring the Biden administration to grant legal status to Venezuelans in order to ease tensions and financial burdens caused by the influx of migrants. Many of the migrants in New York City shelters are Venezuelan.
In addition to the temporary protected status, the Biden administration also plans to expedite work permits for other newcomers and expand a conditional release program for families awaiting asylum decisions. This program uses GPS monitoring and curfews.
Despite the administration’s efforts to handle the strain caused by the increased number of migrants in U.S. cities, there has been a recent surge of newcomers along the southern border. Illegal border crossings are currently at their highest levels since May, overwhelming border agents and detention facilities.
In recent days, over 4,000 migrants, primarily Venezuelan men, have crossed the Rio Grande into Eagle Pass, Texas, to surrender themselves to U.S. authorities. Due to overcrowding in holding cells and extreme daytime temperatures, border agents have placed them under the shade of the international bridge and suspended truck and vehicle processing at two border crossings. The mayor of Eagle Pass has declared a state of emergency.
Many of the migrants arriving in Texas are being quickly processed and released into the United States due to the full capacity of border facilities and detention centers. The Biden administration has urged migrants traveling through Mexico to make appointments to seek asylum at the U.S. border using a mobile app called CBP One. However, Venezuelans arriving in Ciudad Juarez on Wednesday said that their relatives who recently crossed told them that appointments were not necessary.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott criticized the Biden administration for removing concertina wire in Eagle Pass, which he compared to “opening the floodgates to illegal immigration”. Under U.S. law, migrants have the right to request asylum upon arrival, and U.S. border agents have sometimes cleared razor wire.
Former President Trump, a Republican candidate for the 2024 presidential election, promised during a speech in Iowa to end the “nation-wrecking catastrophe” at the southern border. The Biden administration stated that the Pentagon would mobilize 800 active-duty personnel to the southern border in order to relieve the strain on border agents, in addition to the 2,500 National Guard troops already deployed there.
This story was reported by Hernández in El Paso and Ciudad Juarez, with contributions from Maria Sacchetti.
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