ASAP in the News
The City
September 21, 2023
“It’s great news,” said Oliver, a Venezuelan asylum seeker. ASAP said applicants should expect delays, explaining that work permits can sometimes come through quicker via the asylum application process than with TPS.
USA Today
September 21, 2023
ASAP cheered longer validity of work permits for asylum seekers from two years to five, which ASAP members fought for to reduce backlogs and ease hardship of paying $410 each renewal.
The Guardian
September 10, 2023
Work permit backlogs have generated a resistance movement. ASAP, the membership organization formed to fight for faster and fairer treatment by federal agencies, has grown to more than 562,000 members nationwide.
The Marshall Project
September 8, 2023
After USCIS failed to renew his work permit on time, ASAP member Jairo lost his job and his drivers license. Five months later, his renewal arrived. “I felt my soul return to my body,” he said.
The Texas Observer
August 30, 2023
The Justice Department asked a judge to dismiss Leticia and Yovany’s family separation lawsuit. Mother and son are still suffering from the mental and physical trauma caused by the separation, which lasted over two years.
The Guardian
August 27, 2023
ASAP member Leticia was separated from her son at the Mexico-U.S. border under the Zero Tolerance policy. They are seeking justice by suing the federal government, which is fighting in court to defend family separation.
NPR Weekend Edition
August 26, 2023
Eddie, a Colombian newcomer to NYC, has a year to submit an asylum application. After that, he must wait another 150 days to apply for a work permit - that’s at the very least half a year without permission to work.
Almost There Podcast
August 1, 2023
“Only an organized collective of asylum seekers has the power to re-envision the asylum system and create a more welcoming United States,” said ASAP Co-ED Conchita Cruz. “Their voices and stories must be centered.”
The Grio
June 26, 2023
“It's important to recognize that Black migrants face additional barriers when seeking asylum both at the Mexico-U.S. border and once in the United States,” ASAP Policy Director Leidy Perez said in the CBC letter to Biden.
U.S. Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke
June 26, 2023
“As a member-led organization that represents 70,000 Black asylum seekers, ASAP is proud to join Rep. Clarke in urging the Biden administration to address delays impacting Black asylum seekers and broaden TPS,” said Leidy Perez.
USA Today
June 26, 2023
“My children may be forced to go through daylong questioning by government lawyers and medical examiners who will try to blame me for what happened,” said a mother separated from her kids under the Zero Tolerance policy.
U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
June 23, 2023
By law, asylum seekers must wait at least 6 months for a work permit. The ASPIRE Act would cut the wait time for asylum seekers to get work permits from 180 days to 30 days after their asylum application is filed.
