Her case ended in a joyful airport reunion, but the future of asylum is uncertain

ATLANTA — When Anabel fled El Salvador, she had to leave quickly, without saying goodbye to her children. Eight years later, she is waiting nervously in the international terminal at the Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport, where she's about to reunite with those children — and to meet her two grandchildren in person for the first time. Already, she's crying tears of happiness. "Because I don't know them," Anabel says in Spanish. "And I finally get to know them." Their reunion this month is a joyful ending to a closely-watched immigration case — one that is deeply intertwined with the debate over asylum for those crossing at the U.S.-Mexico border. Until now, NPR has referred to Anabel only by her initials, Ms. A.B, which is how she's identified in court papers. For this story, she's given us permission to use her first name — but only her first name, because she's still worried about her abusive ex-husband finding her all these years later. "This is what the asylum system was intended for. You know, for somebody whose life is at risk," said Blaine Bookey, one of Anabel's lawyers with the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies at the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco. Sponsor Message But the reunion is bittersweet for Bookey and other immigrant advocates. For one thing, they say, it should have happened years ago. And it comes just as the Biden administration is considering new rules that would make it harder for migrants arriving at the border to get asylum — including, those advocates argue, women like Anabel. "It shouldn't be this hard," Bookey said. "And just the games that we're playing with people's lives like hers." Anabel shows a picture her family sent from their flight to the United States as she waits for them to arrive. Melissa Golden for NPR Sweeping new asylum restrictions are causing tension In January, President Biden announced tougher new restrictions at the border. "Do not — do not — just show up at the border," he said as he laid out the new approach. Biden rolled out tougher asylum rules. Advocates say it's a betrayal of his promises. NATIONAL Biden rolled out tougher asylum rules. Advocates say it's a betrayal of his promises. The administration has proposed a rule that would make it harder to get asylum for migrants who cross the border illegally without first seeking protection in Mexico, or another country they've passed through on the way. Critics have complained for years that migrants are exploiting the asylum system. Immigration courts are overloaded, with backlogs stretching for years. Immigration hardliners say that's creating a loophole that allows migrants to ask for asylum, even if their claims are flimsy, because they know they'll be allowed to stay in the U.S. while their cases play out. For more information, visit us at http://www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com/index.html.