After a series of federal actions cracking down on illegal immigration in the United States, fewer migrants are entering the country illegally, but more refugees are seeking asylum in Mexico.
Oxfam American is taking on the Trump administration over its executive order temporarily banning the entry of people from seven countries and completely halting Syrian refugee resettlement. The Boston-based group joined the ACLU of Massachusetts and state Attorney General Maura Healey in a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s executive order. They argue that the order in unconstitutional and should be repealed.
The Trump administration’s executive order on refugees was met with immediate backlash from the humanitarian community. Aid groups that provide direct support to refugees around the world condemned the act that bars entry to Syrian refugees, places all refugee resettlement on hold for 120 days and temporarily bans people from seven countries. Some are issuing statements and others are providing information on how their supporters can take action against the order.
Prior to President Donald Trump’s executive order indefinitely banning Syrian refugees, the U.S. took in fewer than 17,000 refugees out of 4.9 million registered by the U.N. The number of people demonstrating at airports across the U.S. over the weekend exceeded – by a lot – the number of refugees resettled in the U.S.