Human Rights First Condemns Passage of Reconciliation Bill: “A Big Ugly Betrayal” 

Washington, D.C. — Human Rights First strongly condemns the passage of the reconciliation bill, describing it as a historic rollback of legal protections for children, refugees, and other survivors of persecution. Yesterday our President and CEO Uzra Zeya joined 13 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, along with leaders from United We Dream and the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), to speak out against the destructive impact of this legislation.

“As millions of Americans lose access to health insurance, this bill forks over more than $150 billion to supercharge the policies of grave harm we’ve seen these past six months,” said Uzra Zeya, President and CEO of Human Rights First. “It will fund more disappearances of people seeking asylum in our country, more masked agents in our courtrooms and neighborhoods to detain and manhandle those following the rules to be here, and more prisons where families, including infants, can now be incarcerated indefinitely due to this Big, Ugly, Betrayal of a bill. This will lead to preventable deaths, put children at risk, and undermine our democracy. To paraphrase Senator Cory Booker, opposing this bill is a matter of right or wrong—not right or left.”

The legislation diverts unprecedented funding to expand immigration enforcement and detention, while stripping basic services and protections from some of the most vulnerable communities. Among its most harmful provisions it:

• Excludes lawfully present refugees, asylees, and survivors of human trafficking and domestic violence from access to vital  health care and nutrition assistance.

• Allocates $45 billion—more than 13 times the FY24 ICE appropriations—to expand immigration jails for families and adults.

• Imposes punitive and unaffordable fees that will block survivors of persecution from accessing asylum protections guaranteed under U.S. and international law.

The passage of the bill comes amid a wave of anti-immigrant, inhumane, and anti-democratic policy decisions, including the elimination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians and efforts to limit the ability of federal judges to halt unconstitutional policies. 

“Human Rights First will not remain silent,” continued Zeya. “In standing up for immigrants, we are standing up for Americans. We are standing up for our human rights. We will continue to fight—in courts, in detention centers, and on the frontlines—where the true, devastating impacts of this legislation will be most acutely felt. And we will continue to #WelcomeWithDignity the most vulnerable newcomers to our nation, in accordance with U.S. law and who we are as Americans.”

To speak with Zeya please contact [email protected].