Migrants with disabilities are reportedly facing significant hurdles when trying to access the U.S. asylum system, a concern that has prompted legal action by advocacy groups. According to a complaint filed by the Texas Civil Rights Project and the Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center, the CBP One phone application, which is the primary method for scheduling appointments at ports of entry, is not accessible for individuals with visual, auditory, mobility, and intellectual disabilities. As reported by the Texas Tribune, the complaint asserts that the app requires migrants to log in every day for months to get an appointment, a task particularly challenging for those with disabilities.
In a statement given to KENS 5, Kassandra Gonzalez, a staff attorney at the Texas Civil Rights Project, said, "I just don’t think they’re prioritized," noting the app as the only accessible means for some to assert asylum eligibility. This digital barrier is part of a larger issue where migrants with disabilities tend to to be especially marginalized and left to grapple with bureaucratic obstacles.
The issue has drawn further attention due to recent tensions between state and federal authorities over border control, highlighting the struggles that vulnerable groups face in their pursuit of asylum. "This is the most vulnerable population, the most overlooked population," Kate Thorstad, a staff attorney at the Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center, told the KERA News. She asserted that these migrants face additional burdens at every turn, emphasizing that alternative procedures must be found for those who cannot use the CBP One app.
Data on the population size of disabled migrants is indeterminate, but workers on the ground report a disproportionate number of disabled individuals among asylum seekers, many of whom are fleeing physical violence. Nicole Elizabeth Ramos, border rights project director for Al Otro Lado, highlighted the difficulty disabled asylum seekers, often traumatized by torture, have to navigate complicated technology like the CBP One app. Ramos' statement to the Texas Tribune reinforces the claim that the lack of app accessibility is in violation of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, which mandates federal technology to be accessible to individuals with disabilities.
Accommodating disabled migrants even before they can use the app is also a significant challenge. Felicia Rangel-Samponaro, who runs The Sidewalk School for Asylum Seekers, recounted to KENS 5 the plight of a blind man who was unable "to even consider starting to use" the app upon being dropped off at the school. The app's facial recognition software also presents an insurmountable obstacle for some, including a woman with facial paralysis and a family with an autistic child, creating a situation where, according to Rangel-Samponaro, "You are literally stuck."
