Biden Changes Trump Policy on Pregnant Immigrants
July 10, 2021, 5:15 am

Biden Changes Trump Policy on Pregnant Immigrants

According to the RT, to a recent update from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said US President Joe Biden has changed immigration policy to bar the detention or arrest of “individuals known to be pregnant, postpartum or nursing.”

Announced by Biden on Friday, the decision to reimpose a ban on the detention of pregnant women and girls was initially outlined in a memo signed last week by acting ICE Director Tae Johnson.

Boasting of the new policy, Johnson said the border agency is “committed to safeguarding the integrity of our immigration system and preserving the health and safety of pregnant, postpartum and nursing individuals.” He added that “given the unique needs of this population,” ICE won’t lock up anyone currently or recently pregnant “unless release is prohibited by law or exceptional circumstances exist,” but did not elaborate on what might warrant such exceptions.

The measure does not rule out arresting pregnant, postpartum or nursing women, the ICE memo stresses, but does require that if they are to be housed in US detention facilities, they must receive mental health services and other appropriate care. The agency is also still permitted to send expecting women to immigration courts.

ICE went out of its way to avoid specifying the gender of any hypothetical prisoner in its memo, a deliberate move intended to include transgender males among the group of pregnancy-capable individuals to whom the policy applies, according to a senior administration official who spoke to USA Today on Friday.

The decision is not so much new as it is a reversal of a 2017 policy enacted by former president Donald Trump, who placed the fight against illegal immigration at the center of his successful 2016 election campaign. Under Trump’s predecessor and Biden’s former boss, Barack Obama, ICE had a stated policy of only detaining pregnant immigrants “under extraordinary circumstances.”

During Trump’s first two years in the White House, pregnant immigrants were detained 80% more frequently than during the last year of Obama’s presidency, according to a Government Accountability Report released last year.

Biden’s version of the policy does expand the period in which illegal migrants can claim exemption from ICE detention, however. While Obama’s policy restricted itself to pregnant women only, Biden’s shield includes those who gave birth up to one year ago, as well as nursing women.

Source: RT

Image source: Reuters-RT

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BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, has sponsored the BuildHer CityHack 2025 Hackathon, a two-day event spearheaded by the College of Engineering and Technology at the Royal University for Women (RUW).
Aimed at secondary school students, the event brought together a distinguished group of academic professionals and technology experts to mentor and inspire young participants.
More than 100 high school students from across the Kingdom of Bahrain took part in the hackathon, which featured an intensive programme of training workshops and hands-on sessions. These activities were tailored to enhance participants’ critical thinking, collaborative problem-solving, and team-building capabilities, while also encouraging the development of practical and sustainable solutions to contemporary challenges using modern technological tools.
BENEFIT’s Chief Executive Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi, commented: “Our support for this educational hackathon reflects our long-term strategic vision to nurture the talents of emerging national youth and empower the next generation of accomplished female leaders in technology. By fostering creativity and innovation, we aim to contribute meaningfully to Bahrain’s comprehensive development goals and align with the aspirations outlined in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030—an ambition in which BENEFIT plays a central role.”
Professor Riyadh Yousif Hamzah, President of the Royal University for Women, commented: “This initiative reflects our commitment to advancing women in STEM fields. We're cultivating a generation of creative, solution-driven female leaders who will drive national development. Our partnership with BENEFIT exemplifies the powerful synergy between academia and private sector in supporting educational innovation.”
Hanan Abdulla Hasan, Senior Manager, PR & Communication at BENEFIT, said: “We are honoured to collaborate with RUW in supporting this remarkable technology-focused event. It highlights our commitment to social responsibility, and our ongoing efforts to enhance the digital and innovation capabilities of young Bahraini women and foster their ability to harness technological tools in the service of a smarter, more sustainable future.”
For his part, Dr. Humam ElAgha, Acting Dean of the College of Engineering and Technology at the University, said: “BuildHer CityHack 2025 embodies our hands-on approach to education. By tackling real-world problems through creative thinking and sustainable solutions, we're preparing women to thrive in the knowledge economy – a cornerstone of the University's vision.”