Asylum Is Not a Loophole, with Colleen Zengotitabengoa

What is asylum? Simply put, the United States must not return someone to a country where they have a well-founded fear of persecution. Following the atrocities of World War II, Congress created a U.S. asylum system under international treaty and federal law. But in recent years, as many more people sought asylum at the U.S./Mexico border, this moral and legal obligation became a political lightning rod.

Colleen Zengotitabengoa has seen these challenges first-hand, in her two decades serving at the Department of Homeland Security, the White House, and Congress. As an attorney, she has directly represented asylum-seekers – real people who were not “exploiting a loophole.” Colleen will help you understand what happened to our asylum system, why it matters, and what we as a nation need to do next.

==Learn More==

Amanda, Claire, and Doug express their own personal opinions on The Melting Pod. This episode was produced by Michael Palmer (⁠palmer.media⁠). Read more about the topics in this episode:

* Asylum in the United States - American Immigration Council (June 2026)

* The Voyage of the St. Louis - Facing History and Ourselves

* Managing migration under pressure: Lessons from the Biden presidency to build a migration policy in the national interest - Brookings Institution (July 2025)

* What Are Safe Mobility Offices? - National Immigration Forum (Feb. 2024)* Abandoning Principles: Unpacking the Supreme Court's Mullin v. Al Otro Lado Denying Asylum to Arriving Migrants - Just Security (June 2026)

* Modernizing America's Asylum System - American Immigration Lawyers Association (April 2026)

==Give More==

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