Russian nationals are showing up at the southern border of the United States to request asylum — and they aren’t being allowed in.
Russians are currently leaving their homeland by the thousands, motivated by the country’s economy, politics, and war against Ukraine. The number of Russian exiles since 2022 is in the hundreds of thousands and likely in excess of a million, according to media reports from all over the world.
Those trying to enter the United States have hit a literal and figurative wall, says a local attorney representing hundreds of Russians.
He said that the Biden administration is refusing entry, even after the administration’s promise that the United States would welcome those fleeing the war and their participation in it.
“[Immigration and Customs Enforcement] has detained virtually all Russian-speaking adults requesting asylum at a port of entry to the United States,” said Bonsall-based lawyer Curtis Morrison.
“Basically, ICE has made a decision to blanket-detain all migrants who are Russian asylum seekers, even after their asylum claims have been granted, in violation of their previous policy called the 2009 Parole Directive.
“That’s the focus of our lawsuit.”
The lawsuit was filed against ICE, the Department of Homeland Security, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
He said they may have nothing Russian about them.
“They may not even be from Russian but a country next to Russia, or maybe speak Russian,” Morrison said.
“We don’t know why ICE implemented this policy, but there’s definitely something up with the Biden administration deciding to treat Russians differently… ICE has detained virtually all Russian-speaking adults requesting asylum at a port of entry to the United States,” he added.
The agency’s San Diego office referred queries to ICE media relations in Washington, DC. While the spokesperson confirmed receipt of the request, the agency has not commented on this story.
Morrison’s original lawsuit was filed on behalf of 30 Russian citizens. He has since filed a second lawsuit on behalf of 150 more, saying ICE shut the lawsuit down despite his clients following proper procedures for entering the United States, seeking asylum, and not posing a flight and public safety, or national security risk.
Morrison says the immigrants all had sponsors in the United States who were ready to offer housing and make sure they show up for their court hearings.
“None of them have criminal records or history of violence,” said Morrison.
He added that many of the asylum seekers are ending up at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego, but the majority are being sent to a detention facility in Louisiana.
“You can go to the border in Tijuana and see who is coming across — you can see they are not all Russians but when you go to detention facilities, especially in Louisiana, you see the majority of detainees are Russian,” he said.
Morrison said he wonders why his clients, who are by and large are against Russia’s government policies and trying to escape them, are being treated as though they have done something wrong.
“Why are we detaining them?”
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
