This week, a coalition of 15 conservative-leaning states launched a new attempt to keep the rule in force, and filed a motion to be part of the legal process surrounding the order, set to expire on December 21st.

According to Los Angeles Times, the states argue that they will suffer ” damage beyond repair, due to the imminent termination of Title 42″ and also that they should be allowed to make arguments long before then.

An attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, which supports overturning the rule, issued a statement questioning the states’ motives for keeping it in effect.

“Title 42 is not about border enforcement, it’s about public health, and these states can’t credibly claim that their real interest is public health,” Lee Gelernt said.

On November 15, a judge ruled in favor of pro-immigrant groups called the ban “arbitrary and capricious”. Judge Emmet Sullivan ruled that the application of the policy should immediately cease for families and adults arriving alone.

According to CNN, the border restrictions under the rule were controversials from the moment Trump´s administration announced them and they went into effect in March 2020; immigrant rights advocates argued at the time that officials were using public health as a pretext to keep as many people out of the country as possible.

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