Vanessa Cárdenas: “A strong majority of Americans want forward looking solutions on immigration that are consistent with our proudest national values”
Washington, DC – As Hamed Aleaziz reports for a Los Angeles Times story, “Americans still support asylum for immigrants fleeing persecution, poll finds,” a strong majority of the country supports offering asylum for those fleeing persecution:
“As the Biden administration prepares to end the use of a Trump-era border measure that restricts access to asylum, most Americans continue to support protections for immigrants who are fleeing persecution and torture abroad.
By 55% to 23%, Americans say the U.S. should continue to offer asylum to people who arrive at the border, if they are found to be fleeing persecution, according to a new survey conducted for The Times by the YouGov polling organization.”
According to Vanessa Cárdenas, Executive Director of America’s Voice:
“Ahead of the end of Title 42 and in advance of potential new and restrictive asylum policy announcements from the Biden Administration, the new polling offers a reminder that Americans rightly support protecting those fleeing violence and human rights abuses. A strong majority of Americans want forward looking solutions on immigration that are consistent with our proudest national values – not warmed over versions of Donald Trump and Stephen Miller’s cruelties, chaos, and failures.
The goals of our policy should never be to eliminate access to our courts for those genuinely fleeing for their lives and the safety of their families or to truncate the asylum process so much that we return people to danger or death. Seeking asylum is not only legal, but having a process for asylum seekers is a requirement of U.S. and international law and treaty agreements. The American people seem to understand the deeply held value of allowing the U.S. to remain a beacon of hope for refugees fleeing danger better than many of our politicians.”
The support for asylum extends across party identification in the new LA Times/YouGov polling. The overall 55-23% margin of support for asylum includes majorities of Democrats and Independents and a plurality of Republican respondents. Specifically:
- Democrats: 71-12% support for asylum (17% unsure)
- Independents: 55-22% support for asylum (24% unsure)
- Republicans: 46-38% support for asylum (16% unsure)
The strong support for asylum in the new LA Times/YouGov polling echoes the findings of an earlier December poll released by the U.S. Immigration Policy Center at U.C. San Diego and the #WelcomeWithDignity asylum rights campaign. That poll found 73% support for offering asylum to people fleeing persecution and/or violence in their home country.
