⚖️ ASYLUM MAVENS KAREN MUSALO, HON “SIR JEFFREY” CHASE, & MARIA DANIELLA PRIESHOFF RIP BONDI’S MISOGYNISTIC ATTEMPT TO TURN BACK THE CLOCK ON ASYLUM SEEKERS!

Karen Musalo says:

On Tuesday Attorney General Bondi reinstated regressive rulings from the first Trump administration in an attempt to eliminate access to asylum for women and families seeking refuge. In Matter of S-S-F-M-, Bondi resurrects then-Attorney General Sessions’ 2018 Matter of A-B- ruling, which declared that women fleeing domestic violence should “generally” be denied asylum. In Matter of R-E-R-M- & J-D-R-M-, Bondi restores the 2019 Matter of L-E-A- ruling, which attempted to end asylum for families and children fleeing targeted violence. Taken together, Bondi’s rulings will effectively shutter some of the few remaining avenues for women and families fleeing persecution to find safety in the United States.

“This is a brazen power grab by Trump’s Justice Department – an attempt to rewrite our laws to deny protection to women and families escaping deadly violence,” said Professor Karen Musalo, Director of the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies (CGRS). “Bondi’s decision in S-S-F-M- attempts to turn back the clock on decades of hard-fought progress to recognize domestic and other forms of gendered violence as violations of women’s human rights. Her ruling in R-E-R-M- & J-D-R-M- is a calculated strategy to end asylum for families who deserve protection. Notwithstanding these attempts, judges are required to consider each case on its individual merits, and many women and families should still qualify for asylum. However, we know that Bondi’s decisions will cause confusion and provide a justification to judges who are inclined to reject asylum claims without fair consideration. In cases with life-or-death stakes, this will mean women and families being deported to countries where they face grave risks. CGRS represented Ms. A.B. in her landmark case and served as amicus in Matter of L-E-A-. We will continue to fight for a fair and just interpretation of our refugee law, in compliance with our international legal obligations, and will see the administration back in court.”

In this week’s decisions, Bondi attempts to erase decades of precedent to shut the door on refugee women and families. In S-S-F-M-, Bondi characterizes domestic violence and other forms of gendered violence as “private conduct,” returning to a long-discarded conception that such abuses are of no concern to the state – the same logic used to protect abusers from accountability and force survivors into the shadows. This reasoning could also be used to deny protection to LGBTQ+ refugees escaping persecution and children fleeing abuse and exploitation. Bondi’s decision ignores a robust body of legal precedent recognizing gender-based violence as a basis for asylum, including multiple precedential rulings rejecting Matter of A-B- under the first Trump administration.

In R-E-R-M- & J-D-R-M-, Bondi similarly attempts to upend decades of legal precedent and Justice Department policy recognizing families as a “particular social group,” one of the protected legal grounds upon which an asylum claim can be based. Her ruling in this case will make it exceedingly difficult for ordinary families who are persecuted based on their familial relationships to find safety together in the United States.

Under the first Trump administration, the Matter of A-B- and Matter of L-E-A- rulings were met with widespread condemnation by U.S. lawmakers, the UN Refugee Agency, former immigration judges, and humanitarian and human rights organizations

https://cgrs.uclawsf.edu/en/news/trump-slams-door-women-and-families

Hon. Jeffrey Chase says:

Basically the asylum law equivalent of holding that the earth is flat, and the sun revolves around the earth. In fact, we’re probably about 3 days away from NASA posting both of those things on its website.

Maria Daniella Prieshoff says:

No one should experience violence because of their gender. And if they do, they have the right to seek safety.

Yesterday, the Attorney General issued a decision to return to the flawed language originally set forth in the 2018 Matter of A-B- decision that will create new obstacles to accessing asylum protections for immigrant survivors fleeing violence. This is a step in the wrong direction when it comes to protecting women and girls from domestic violence, sexual assault, and other forms of gender-based violence.

Congress must act now to name gender as a sixth ground for asylum so that women and girls who fear persecution have a path to safety like those fearing harm because of their race, religion, or political opinions.

Join our Director of Public Policy and Litigation Counsel at a free webinar on September 24th at 12 p.m. ET to learn more about gender-based asylum, the impact of recent decisions, and Tahirih’s response: https://lnkd.in/e7faZAiy

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Bondi turns back the clock at EOIR:

Advocates have been fighting for justice for women and families under asylum laws for nearly three decades. They have achieved notable success, only to have well-respected, hard-earned, precedents that have benefitted the U.S. and protected worthy asylum seekers overturned by restrictionist politicos, then restored, then voided again. The fight for justice will continue.

I can’t see a feeble, Trump-dominated Congress acting to solve this problem.  But, individual cases might still be winnable in some Immigration Courts with carefully considered strategies. And, there should be plenty of opportunities to challenge Bondi’s politically biased and defective “reasoning” in Circuit Courts.

That’s where organizations like the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies, Tahirih Justice Center, and the Round Table will continue to play key roles in fighting injustice and promoting due process for all!

⚖️ Due Process Forever!

PWS

09-05-25

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