The Biden administration unveiled a blanket policy on Thursday to turn away Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans who cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally — a move that immigrant rights groups condemned as harmful and punitive.
The new policy offers legal entry into the U.S. under humanitarian parole for up to 30,000 migrants and asylum seekers per month from Nicaragua, Haiti, Cuba and Venezuela, the four countries driving a sharp increase in unauthorized immigration over the last few months. Applicants, who can apply from their phones, must have a U.S. sponsor and undergo a vetting process.
However, the White House also announced that it would leverage Title 42, which President Donald Trump used to expel migrants during the COVID-19 pandemic, to turn back people from those nations who attempt to cross the border illegally rather than going through the application process. Those who cross illegally into Panama or Mexico will be automatically disqualified from the parole program….
