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After months of a rush of asylum seekers to New York City — many fleeing political persecution in Venezuela, and many bussed here from Texas and Arizona — the flow is slowing. migration of people to the southern border under the policy changes of the Biden. .
But with more than 21,000 new arrivals in New York since the spring, the flow of immigrants seeking asylum in New York City’s immigration courts is as overwhelming as it has been in months. past
On Tuesday morning, hundreds of immigrants gathered outside Manhattan’s 26 Federal Plaza, which houses the largest of New York City’s three immigration courts. Some of the immigrants were there to check in with the Immigration and Naturalization Service, while others were summoned for their first hearings in their deportation proceedings.
Applying for and receiving asylum is a lengthy process, and the right is granted to those who can demonstrate a reason to fear persecution for their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, membership or to a social group. Asylum seekers have one year after arriving in the United States to submit their asylum application, and must wait another five months after submitting that application to apply for a work permit in America.
For the thousands of immigrants who have arrived in recent months, the process of obtaining asylum status has been a confusing and bureaucratic process, intensified by the courts and the lack of legal services for immigrants. For many, it is the maze starting outside 26 Federal Plaza at dawn. “It took me an hour to get from the Bronx, and I’ve been here since 5 o’clock,” said Miguel, an asylum seeker from Venezuela who was waiting outside the immigration court without declined to give his last name for fear of retribution. he asked. Others lined up outside 26 Federal Plaza on Sunday morning and arrived as early as 4 p.m.
An immigration case begins with a notice to appear in court. Immigration lawyers said they should be allowed into the United States, Newly arrived asylum seekers are told at the border to go through an inspection with ICE shortly after arriving at their final destination, and notices to appear are being filed in court at after those entries. Alexia Schapira, a supervising attorney at the Legal Aid Society, said asylum seekers don’t usually check with ICE before being issued notices to appear.
Because of the high number of people coming to the building that houses the immigration court and the ICE office, attorneys and advocates said that people have come to join ICE at 2 in the morning or 3 in the morning and hopefully just get in. the house. “Sometimes the guards cut the line and don’t let everyone in the building, even if they have ICE cards that day,” said Lauren Wyatt, executive attorney with Catholic Charities. Community Services, said in a press release. hosted by the New York Immigration Coalition last month.
Speaking to Town and Country on Tuesday, Wyatt said the situation hasn’t gotten any better since immigration to the area has slowed. “The system is at capacity – or beyond capacity. It’s overburdened,” he said. “
Immigration advocates are warning that applicants are left in a vulnerable situation facing a one-year deadline to apply for asylum but unable or unsure how to take the first steps to jump-starting their applications in time to make decisions. that deadline.
People who have turned away from checking in with ICE because the agency has more capacity have learned to schedule appointments via email. But those appointments are set to run until mid-2024, which is more than a year away for newly arrived asylum seekers.
The delay in starting the asylum application process also pushes back the process of obtaining temporary legal status, which people can apply for up to 150 days after submitting their asylum application. “If they can first submit that asylum application sometime in 2024, so they can apply for their work permit at the end of 2024, that means they will be here for two years and can’t do it right. “, said Wyatt. “So people are in a real place.”
There have been long questions about ICE’s access and confusion about how asylum seekers can start their applications in a timely manner, a spokesperson for the Justice Department’s Office of Review U.S. Immigration – which has jurisdiction over the immigration court at 26 Federal Plaza – said it had contacted the Department of Homeland Security. “Our immigration judges are aware of the issue and remain adept at deciding motions to reopen or continue cases,” an agency spokeswoman wrote in an email. lawyers and legal aid organizations in the city. “Access to justice is one of the most important things that can change the outcome of a case and can help someone navigate the legal system and hopefully get justice and relief. or entitled to them under current law,” Camille Mackler, founder of the Immigrant Advocates Response Collaborative, said in a press release last month.
But advocates say there aren’t enough legal resources to meet the demand. Catholic Charities runs programs to help people who don’t have an immigration attorney and provides walk-in services at city immigration courts. “Our program is in one of the nearby courts every day, but there’s no way we can see everyone,” Wyatt said. “Last Friday, our attorney found eight people and we turned 50 people away.” Wyatt and Mackler called for new city and state jobs for immigration enforcement services and a faster law enforcement response to help with the situation.
Several people in line at 26 Federal Plaza on Sunday, including a couple who live in a suburb in Queens, said they had not contacted any lawyers or received legal advice. New York City has set up emergency response and recovery centers – one for families at the Row NYC hotel, and a tent city for singles on Randall’s Island – and will open more than 50 emergency centers in hotels around the city for short stays for new arrivals.
A City Hall spokeswoman said asylum seekers can access legal information at the Randall’s Island and Row hotels, and staff at those locations can set up meetings with legal providers. through the city’s Asylum Seeker Resources Navigation Center. Mayor Eric Adams’ administration has also called for federal and state funding and asked the state government to expedite work permits for asylum seekers.
– and additional reporting by Ralph R. Ortega
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