Tell Trump to End His Assault on the Right to Seek Asylum

Health workers, public health experts, and human rights supporters are alarmed by your administration’s new policies that directly attack the fundamental, long-standing rights of those seeking asylum and protection from violence and persecution.

Under your Executive Orders, people fleeing persecution, violence, and danger will face even greater barriers to safety. Families seeking refuge will be turned away, detained, or forced into dangerous conditions.

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) has long documented the devastating physical and psychological harms caused by U.S. immigration policies – including family separation, prolonged and unnecessary detention, and medical neglect. These policies have caused profound suffering for people seeking asylum, many of whom have already endured violence, persecution, and other human rights violations before arriving in the U.S.

PHR has conducted in-depth investigations, collaborated with medical and legal experts, and produced evidence demonstrating the serious health consequences of these policies. This research has exposed the deep distress – in some cases amounting to torture – experienced by parents and children separated at the border, the dangerous health risks associated with prolonged confinement in immigration detention, and the medical failures in detention facilities. PHR has also documented the consequences of the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), which have forced people seeking asylum to remain in dangerous conditions in Mexico, where they are vulnerable to violence, exploitation, and inadequate medical care.

As these harms continue to escalate, I join PHR in its commitment to documenting their effects and ensuring that evidence informs policy decisions. We urge your administration to take steps to mitigate the suffering of people seeking asylum and to ensure that the U.S. upholds its obligations to protect those fleeing persecution.

We’re calling on your administration to immediately reverse these harmful policies and uphold the legal protections for asylum seekers. The U.S. is obligated to honor these protections under both international and domestic law.

We urge you to follow the letter of the law and uphold an asylum system rooted in compassion, fairness, and human rights.