In a recent small victory for immigration justice, migrants who find themselves in the border city of Juarez will now be assisted with food, shelter, transportation, and medical and legal aid. 

This is all thanks to the Border Refugee Assistance Fund, with nearly $20,000 in investments from the Hope Border Institute and El Paso Catholic Bishop Mark Seitz. 

The funding will directly address the needs of asylum-seekers and migrants, including pregnant mothers and those who are subject to expulsion under Title 42 — the CDC public health order put in place to prevent cross-border spread of COVID-19. 

As reported in a recent news release, the Border Refugee Assistance Fund has given the migrant population more than $100,000 in aid in 2021 alone. 

Dylan Corbett, executive director of Hope Border Institute said in a statement that the funding served as a way to demonstrate their community’s commitment to “walking with those on the margins” and supporting migrants with humanity and compassion. 

“With policies like Title 42 and the forced return to Mexico of those seeking protection and safety, there continues to be tremendous human need at the border,” Corbett said. 

“We are grateful to our partners in Ciudad Juarez for their generous collaboration in meeting the needs of the most vulnerable,” he said. 

The Hope Border Institute also formed a partnership with the Jesuit Refugee Service, an international Catholic organization with a mission to advocate for and serve refugees and other forcibly displaced individuals.

The organizations are calling on citizens to take quick action by sending a scripted message to President Biden and members of Congress to repeal Title 42 and restore access to asylum for all.  

“Title 42 has been used to deny the opportunity for thousands of asylum seekers to petition for safety. Kidnapping, extortion, and violence plague the most vulnerable as they wait in Mexico,” reads the direct action page of the Jesuit Refugee Service website. 

On Thursday, Aug. 12, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas strongly defended the Biden administration’s strategy for handling migration to the U.S.-Mexico border. 

"It is critical that intending migrants understand clearly that they will be turned back if they enter the United States illegally and do not have a basis for relief under our laws," Mayorkas told reporters. 

The following day, Hope Border Institute simply stated on their Twitter, that this strategy is not sustainable. 

“Expulsions under Title 42 continue to burden the humanitarian response beyond capacity. It takes away the opportunity to request asylum from people who are fleeing extreme poverty and violence by putting them at risk,” the group wrote. 

Asylum is a human right. The Border Refugee Assistance Fund is just one example of how humanitarian groups are fighting to make this right a reality.