GENEVA (11 March 2026) – Racist hate speech by
political leaders, including the President, combined with
intensified immigration crackdowns in the United States,
notably near schools, hospitals and faith-based
institutions, has sparked grave human rights violations, the
UN
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
(CERD) warned today.
The Committee was deeply
disturbed by the growing use of derogatory and dehumanizing
language, and the dissemination of negative and harmful
stereotypes targeting migrants, refugees, and asylum
seekers. “Portraying them as criminals or as a burden, by
politicians and influential public figures at the highest
level, particularly the President,” the Committee said,
“may incite racial discrimination and hate
crimes.”
It underscored that the systematic use of
racial profiling and arbitrary identity checks by the
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Customs
and Border Protection (CBP) against people of
Hispanic/Latino, African or Asian origin has resulted in
widespread arrests of refugees, asylum seekers, migrants,
and people perceived as such.
The Committee also
raised alarm that the lives and physical integrity of the
above vulnerable groups are jeopardised by the excessive use
of force and violence by enforcement officers during
immigration operations. It cited that at least eight people
have died since January 2026 during ICE operations or while
in ICE custody, including protesters exercising their right
to freedom of peaceful assembly and association and detained
refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants.
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In addition,
the Committee raised a red flag over the State Party’s
decisions to rescind long-standing guidelines and policies
limiting immigration enforcement operations and arrests in
and near schools, hospitals, and faith-based institutions.
This, it warned, “hinders migrants, in particular
undocumented migrants, refugees, asylum seekers, and those
perceived as such, from accessing essential services, such
as healthcare, and education.”
It was also gravely
concerned about the recent discriminatory measures,
including the automatic denial of all pending applications
by asylum seekers from Afghanistan, the re-review of already
approved asylum and immigration requests by individuals from
19 States who entered its territories on or after 20 January
2021, and the suspension of Temporary Protected Status for
nationals from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Haiti,
Honduras, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua and South
Sudan.
The Committee urged the US to conduct a human
rights-based review of its legislative measures adopted
since January 2025, including by suspending immigration
enforcement operations, such as identity checks and arrests,
in and around schools, hospitals, and faith-based
institutions.
It also called for a clear definition of
racial profiling by law enforcement officials and for it to
be explicitly prohibited during enforcement
operations.
It further urged the State Party to
publicly condemn racial discrimination and racist hate
speech, and to adopt immediate measures to establish human
rights-based non-custodial alternatives to detention,
particularly for children, families, and others in
vulnerable situations.
The Committee, issued its Decision
today under its early
warning and urgent procedures. The United States
ratified the International
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial
Discrimination (ICERD) in
1994.
