The ACLU sued the Trump Administration for shutting down most avenues to asylum, a move that has thrown the immigration system into chaos, sowed confusion at the Southern border and left tens of thousands in Mexico who sought to enter the U.S. legally with few options.
Lawyers representing three nonprofits that provide services for asylum seekers at the Southern border filed the suit at the District Court for the District of Columbia on Monday, arguing Trump unconstitutionally overrode Congressional statutes, violated federal laws and international agreements meant to protect those fleeing persecution.
Hours after being sworn in, Trump signed an executive order that declared an “invasion” at the southern border, eliminating paths to apply for asylum for those at the border, severely restricting border crossing and cutting off the mobile asylum application CPB One.
The order was one in a series that could drastically reshape the immigration system and change America’s national identity as a refuge for persecuted peoples.
Lawyers say that the administration is removing asylum protections even among those already in the country and denying those who should be afforded the right to apply for asylum. They argue that officials have told migrants that asylum “does not exist.”
“The proclamation, if upheld, would mean our entire asylum system can be eliminated whenever the president makes the sham claim that we are being invaded by immigrants,” said Lee Gelernt, an ACLU attorney, who has argued some of the highest profile border asylum cases over the past two administrations. “It’s unprecedented and extreme.”
Asylum provides a path to citizenship for those that fear persecution in their homeland because of their race, religion, nationality, social group or political views. And for decades it has been a hallmark of the American immigration system. Under federal and international law, the right to asylum exists regardless of how a person arrived on U.S. soil.
Trump says he is making good on his campaign promise to “seal” the borders and has deployed military troops there to deter migrants from crossing.
Trump halted asylum access during his first term, using a public health statute and citing COVID-19 risk to quickly expel migrants from the U.S. The recent executive order declares that “an invasion is ongoing at the southern border” — despite low arrival numbers in recent months — and used that to justify the suspension of all entries.
In his executive order, Trump invokes a 1952 Immigration code that allows the president to suspend entry of a class of noncitizens determined to be “detrimental to the interests of the United States.” That rule, has been used at least 90 times since 1981, according to the lawsuit, but never before did it affect people’s right to apply for or receive asylum.
Trump’s executive order had broad implication but its most immediate impact came along the Southern border.
When officials turned off CPB One, which the Biden Administration had expanded, tens of thousands of appointments were canceled. The app allowed migrants to register for an appointment with border agents and legally enter the U.S. to apply for asylum. Between January 2023 and December 2024, more than 936,500 people scheduled appointments using the app, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Immigration statistics show 54,350 individuals were granted asylum in 2023, the most recent data available. The largest group came from Afghanistan followed by China and Venezuela, according to government data. Those figures had been steadily rising under the Biden Administration.
