Border Patrol agents are breaking from a practice in effect since 1997 by no longer asking migrants if they fear deportation. President Joe Biden's administration suspended asylum at the border last month and doesn’t ask about fears. Migrants must bring it up for a chance to avoid deportation. Immigration advocates call it the “shout test,” suggesting migrants must shout their fears, though agents are taught to respond to nonverbal signs of distress including crying or shaking. It's unclear to what extent the “shout test” is responsible for a decline in border arrests of more than 50%.
