US citizens who are sponsoring family members to come to the United States are seeking to intervene in a case over a key immigration program that’s been challenged in court by several Republican-led states.
At the center of the case is the so-called humanitarian parole program that provides a way for migrants from Nicaragua, Venezuela, Haiti, and Cuba seeking to come to the US to do so without taking the dangerous journey to the US-Mexico border. Among the requirements migrants must meet is obtaining a sponsor in the US.
“I want my family members to have the same chance I was given,” Valerie Laveus, a Florida schoolteacher, told CNN. Laveus, who’s one of the seven intervenors, is trying to bring her brother and nephew who are living in dangerous conditions in Haiti to the United States.
The use of the humanitarian parole program has become a key part of the Biden administration’s broader strategy to try to stem the flow of migrants to the US southern border. President Joe Biden has repeatedly touted the program and attributed a recent drop in border crossings to it, among other efforts.
“Since we created dedicated pathways in the United States, the number of migrants arriving on our southern border has dropped precipitously,” Biden said during his visit to Canada earlier this month.
But in late January, Republican-led states filed a lawsuit against the humanitarian parole program, arguing that the administration exceeded its authority in its use of the program and requesting the court block it. The Justice Department is expected to defend the program.
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