TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — Nearly 80 Somali nationals who are seeking asylum in the United States after entering the country through Mexico have been transferred to a detention center in Tacoma — the latest group of a growing number of East African immigrants who are seeking entrance to the country through routes usually used by Latino immigrants.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection statistics say that nearly 260 Somalis have reached the U.S.-Mexican border in the first eight months of the fiscal year 2010, eclipsing the more than 240 who sought asylum the entire year before.
The arrival of Somalis at Tacoma has sent the lone free legal aid firm that serves the detention center scrambling to try to help the asylum seekers navigate the country’s complex immigration laws.
Attorney Betsy Tao says it’s too early to predict if all the asylum applications will be granted.
