This archive report was first published on 22 April 2020.
Trump Cuts Immigration Amid UN Humanitarian Crisis Warning ¶
US President Donald Trump has partially blocked immigration to protect American workers from the economic shock of the coronavirus pandemic, as the UN warns of a humanitarian catastrophe.
On April 21, 2020, President Trump announced that he would be issuing a temporary suspension of immigration into the United States, citing the need to protect American workers.
“In order to protect American workers, I will be issuing a temporary suspension of immigration into the United States,” he said.
“It will help put unemployed Americans first in line for jobs as America reopens. It would be wrong and unjust for Americans to be replaced with immigrant labor flown in from abroad.”
The move comes as the world grapples with the economic impact of the pandemic, with millions of jobs lost and businesses shuttered.
According to the UN's World Food Programme (WFP), the pandemic is projected to nearly double the number of people suffering from acute hunger to 265 million this year.
“I want to stress that we are not only facing a global health pandemic, but also a global humanitarian catastrophe,” WFP executive director David Beasley told the UN Security Council on Tuesday.
“Millions of civilians living in conflict-scarred nations… face being pushed to the brink of starvation.”
The pandemic has also taken a toll on the mental health of healthcare workers, with many reporting feelings of anxiety and PTSD.
“The same thing every day… is draining,” said Heather Isola, a physician assistant.
“What is it going to do to us? The anxieties, the PTSD, the experience of death and dying. Most people haven’t seen death and dying like this.”
As the world struggles to cope with the pandemic, global markets remain under intense pressure, with oil prices crashing in recent weeks.
Extraordinary stimulus measures worth trillions of dollars have given some boost to stock markets, but have failed to lift the overall mood on trading floors.
