CBP is Using Pandemic as Cover for Deportations, Advocates Say

Several Democratic senators, including former presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), grilled Customs and Border Protection Acting Commissioner Mark Morgan on reports that unaccompanied migrant children are not being appropriately screened to determine if they are victims of human trafficking.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as of March 20, suspended migration of immigrants at Mexican and Canadian borders because of the coronavirus pandemic. The order suspends admission of certain immigrants regardless of their country of origin.

Over a phone interview, Ursela Ojeda, policy advisor for Women’s Refugee Commission, pushed back on both CBP and the CDC to explain why the current border restrictions continue to be necessary.

“The CDC has been politicized and is blocking the admission of asylum seekers and vulnerable individuals at the border in the name of public health,” said Ojeda.