Today, House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), released the following joint statement after the Trump Administration ended asylum protections for domestic violence survivors:

“Today, Attorney General Sessions issued a decision that puts American immigration enforcement on the side of domestic abusers. In yet another step by this Administration to dismantle U.S. asylum protections, this decision undermines protections for victims of domestic violence and takes away one of the few opportunities for refuge available to victims who are subjected to horrific violence in the home.  

“The case involves a woman who suffered decades of physical abuse at the hands of her husband. She was raped by her ex-husband after divorcing him, and her former brother-in-law—a police officer—threatened her with death. Despite her efforts to seek safety and justice in El Salvador, she was left with no option other than to flee and seek refuge elsewhere. Two years ago, the Board of Immigration Appeals issued an order offering her asylum in this country. Today, Attorney General Sessions ripped that decision, and her hopes for a life without rape and other forms of abuse, into shreds. First, she was failed by her government; today, she was failed by ours.

“Today’s decision is yet another example of an administration that lacks a moral compass and stands in defiance to our nation’s history as a beacon of freedom and a refuge for the persecuted.  From the ripping of thousands of children from the arms of their parents to the dismantling of our asylum system, this Administration appears to have an insatiable appetite for deterring immigration at any cost.  Our country is better than this, and we hope the decision will be reconsidered.”

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