WASHINGTON – Earlier today, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a preliminary nationwide injunction prohibiting the Trump administration from enforcing its public charge rule before it was to take effect on October 15th. Since that ruling, additional federal district courts have issued similar injunctions. The discriminatory public charge rule is meant to pick and choose who could immigrate to or stay in this country. This rule would harm many families and communities, including many Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders (AAs and NHPIs).
“The public charge rule has led to many families and individuals to dis-enroll from health programs, forgoing their care in fear of repercussions,” said Kathy Ko Chin, president and CEO of the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF). “The court’s ruling is not just a win for immigrant communities like ours, but a win for American values.”
APIAHF, and its partners in the Protecting Immigrant Families (PIF) campaign have worked tirelessly to organize community action against the Administration’s public charge rule. This includes submitting hundreds of thousands of public comments, including tens of thousands from the Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander community, under the banner of #OneNation.
“The injunction is a major win for our immigrant families, and advocacy and coalition building groups like APIAHF,” said Juliet K. Choi, senior vice president for government & external relations, APIAHF. “Through coalition building, we have been able to mobilize the community to fight back against unfair and capricious policies like public charge. This shows that public action works, and we must continue to bring light to policies that would adversely affect our community.”
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