Families in Georgia may want to know more about the recent ruling ending asylum in the United States. Proposed by the Trump administration, new federal regulations would end asylum, first granted in 1980 by Congress. With protests promised by human rights activists, it is predicted that this administration will still put the new regulations into effect.
According to The Hill, The Refugee Act was passed in that year; it offered asylum for anyone who could show a well-founded fear of persecution in their own country because of race, nationality, religion or political opinion and extended to members of a particular social group.
Over the years, administrations have approved and added to these applications; about a third of them were granted. A good deal of the successful applicants escaped such dangers as prolonged imprisonment and torture and beatings because of political beliefs. Some gay people escaped death or imprisonment because of their sexual orientation. Women were threatened with death by Central American gangs unless they became sex slaves of the gang.
Gradually, the Trump administration has been undercutting laws that have given asylum. One decision made it difficult for victims of domestic violence to seek asylum. Another regulation from 2019 bars asylum for anyone who crosses the southern border. It is hoped these regulations will disappear in 2021.
The risk of deportation is real. If a foreign national receives a deportation or removal order from the government, it can be very threatening and confusing. Clarification and understanding of the laws is best accomplished with an immigration attorney. Fighting deportation takes knowledge and expertise in immigration laws. An attorney might present an effective defense and reasons for the person to remain in the country.
