Luis Chaparro Documentary - Juan José from Venezuela traveled to the US-Mexico border for two months in hopes of ending Title 42 immigration policy [Luis Chaparro/Al Jazeera]
Juan José stands on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande River, his brown eyes fixed on a long line of dragons on the water. There, about 200 people are waiting to enter the United States, the latest influx of asylum seekers to the border city of El Paso, Texas.
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But the 19-year-old Venezuelan is not among them. In the three days since his arrival, Juan José has bided his time, waiting to see if the U.S. border policy known as Title 42 ends.
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A rarely used section of the US Code that dates back to 1944, Title 42 allows the federal government to reject asylum seekers on public health grounds. Former US President Donald Trump first announced the law in March 2020 as the US struggled in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.
But in recent years, Title 42 has been used to deport millions of asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border, raising concerns that it violates their right to due process.
In November, a U.S. District Court judge declared the policy "arbitrary and capricious" and decided to strike down Title 42. But the U.S. Supreme Court stepped in Monday to temporarily halt the proposed expiration date. , which was held on December 21. a response to requests from Republican officials in 19 states who have warned of an increase in asylum seekers if Title 42 expires.
The uncertainty surrounding Title 42 has left individuals like Juan José uncertain about their future. Cities like El Paso continue to push for more border crossings, with El Paso Mayor Oscar Leeser declaring a state of emergency on Saturday.
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As the bitter wind whips his rough coat, Juan José puts his trembling hands in his pockets and tells his story. It had been exactly two months since he left home and went to the United States; He didn't tell his parents about his plans until he was already in Colombia.
His father was "surprised and sad," Juan José said, but understood his son's desire to earn money to take care of his siblings. Besides, what could his father do about it? - I'm on my way.
On his way from Colombia to Panama, Juan José passed through the dense and treacherous forests of the Darien Gap. There, he saw bodies - he assumed they were other refugees and migrants who had died "trying to get out of the damn forest".
Then, when he got to Mexico, he learned the bad news: Venezuelans previously excluded from Title 42 would now be deported as part of a deal between Mexico and the Biden administration.
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The agreement allows a limited number of Venezuelans to seek asylum in the United States, but only if they can afford the passport and airfare and have a sponsor in the United States to help them financially. Those arriving at the border must stay in Mexico.
"I'm angry about the whole [journey] I've been through," he said. "But I went until I arrived in Ciudad Juárez, a Mexican city on the border of El Paso.
Now Juan José is weighing his options. If Title 42 ends, it may be tied to New York. If the policy continues, either through Supreme Court action or as part of a congressional deal, the 19-year-old will live in Mexico.
Thousands of people share Juan José's fate. The potential consequences of the policy gave hope to asylum seekers heading to the United States. However, that outlook remains uncertain due to ongoing legal and political battles over the fate of Title 42.
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Experts such as Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, an attorney and policy director of the American Immigration Council, warn that Title 42 will exacerbate confusion over US immigration policy.
"Address 42 is taken," said Reichlin-Melnick. Policy is "basically a clear tool for solving a problem that requires a complex solution".
Texas politicians disagree. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Gov. Greg Abbott want Title 42 to remain in place, and their state is part of an ongoing Republican-led legislative effort to continue the policy, fearing it will escalate.
A federal appeals court on Friday refused to block the end of Title 42, opening the door to a Supreme Court decision to intervene on Monday. Reichlin-Melnick called the Supreme Court the most likely path to a long-term continuation of Title 42.
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Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott has warned of chaos at the US-Mexico border if the Title 42 regulations expire [File: Go Nakamura/Reuters]
Other politicians, such as Texas Republican John Cornyn and West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin, have previously called on US President Joe Biden to find a way to extend Title 42 beyond the planned time.
In the letter to the president, the two senators joined U.S. Reps. Henry Cuellar and Tony Gonzales of Texas in pushing for the extension, arguing that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) does not have "sufficient support or resources" to allow the U.S. control it. end of title 42.
DHS has released an overview of its post-Title 42 plans (PDF), though details are scarce. He puts a lot of emphasis on overhauling the asylum system, as well as a proposal to send more resources, such as medical care, to the border.
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"The only real solution," the document says, "is for Congress to fix our broken and outdated immigration system."
The Biden administration, on the other hand, has announced it wants Title 42 to expire, although the White House is said to be considering policies that would reduce the number of refugees and immigrants eligible for asylum in countries such as Venezuela, Haiti, Nicaragua and Cuba.
This policy would be an extension of the agreement that restricts Venezuelan asylum seekers. It has drawn criticism for being similar to a plan put forward by former presidential adviser Stephen Miller, an immigration hardliner working for the Trump administration.
Refugees and migrants, many braving the cold with blankets, line up on the US side of the Rio Grande River to seek asylum [Jose Luis Gonzalez/Reuters]
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In a statement issued on December 13, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas tried to play down any changes to US border policy should Title 42 expire.
"Once the Title 42 order expires, DHS will process individuals arriving at the border without valid travel documents under its long-standing Title 8 authority," Mayorkas said.
"Let me be clear," he continued. "Title 42 or not, those who cannot establish a legal basis to stay in the United States will be removed."
Under Title 42, some asylum seekers are sent back to their home countries, but most are simply sent back to Mexico, making it easier for them to try to cross the border again. After Title 42 was implemented, apprehensions increased by about 20 percent, according to U.S. Border Patrol data.
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But if the policy does happen, experts like Reichlin-Melnick predict that people who try to cross multiple times will face stiffer penalties, including the possibility of federal deportation, a formal removal process that carries greater legal risk. For example, they can arrest and detain people who try to return after official deportation.
"There's no doubt that in the short term, a lot of people will be released [in the United States]," Reichlin-Melnick said of the expiration of Title 42. "The real issue is long term. Illegality, more deportations and ultimately fewer crossings."
In El Paso, Texas, asylum seekers are bussed to local shelters, although city officials warn that resources are tight [Ivan Pierre Aguirre/Reuters]
Robert Painter, legal director of the refugee rights organization American Gateways, says the US immigration system is ill-equipped to deal with modern drivers of displacement such as climate change, domestic violence and non-state actors such as gangs.
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He is currently preparing to file charges in an asylum case involving a Honduran woman who fled to the United States after experiencing domestic violence. Women like her may apply for asylum because there is no hope of protection or redress in their countries.
"It's hours and hours of testimony and 350 pages of evidence, and I still can't say that this [case] has a good chance of success," Painter said.
Meanwhile, tensions are growing between his organization and Texas politicians like Paxton, who is currently investigating US Gateways and other NGOs for using Texas Bar Foundation money to "support border fanatics."
Cities along the border are already seeing more and more crossings, and El Paso saw a jump in early August. Advocates and city officials told Al Jazeera that shelters are already overcrowded.
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"Everything is very fluid, so to say exactly what our plan is, it's a little difficult because it's fluid," El Paso spokeswoman Laura Cruz said.
Cruz noted that the city recently spent $9 million to house, care for and relocate Texas refugees and immigrants from places like Chicago and New York City.
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