With a deadline approaching in just hours, the Biden administration on Monday announced that it will expand and extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designations for Haiti, a move that could potentially shield tens of thousands additional migrants who are already in the U.S.
In a statement, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) cited “extraordinary and temporary conditions” in expanding and extending relief, including a “prolonged political crisis” following the assassination of the small nation’s president last year. The Biden administration’s decision Monday extends access to work permits and deportation relief for another 18 months, through August 2024. By also adjusting the existing eligibility date, another 110,000 Haitians already here as of Nov. 6 can also apply for protections in addition to the roughly 56,000 Haitians who currently have relief.
It’s a major win for families and advocates like Haitian Bridge Alliance, who have been steadily leading this call for relief. There’s no doubt this action will save lives.
RELATED STORY: Senate progressives call on Biden admin to protect Haitian immigrants as deadline looms
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“We welcome this much-needed announcement from the Biden administration,” said Haitian Bridge Alliance Executive Director Guerline Jozef in a statement received by Daily Kos. “We rejoice and celebrate with our Haitian siblings and stand undeterred, in solidarity as we continue to work with and for the Haitian and Haitian-American communities.” Most recently, the organization led a Nov. 22 letter supported by more than 400 organizations urging the Biden administration to expand and extend relief by a Dec. 5 deadline, and cited support from a number of leading senators. “Haiti’s TPS status is urgently warranted,” lawmakers had written.
“We are grateful for all our partner organizations, many of whom supported the letter led by the Haitian Bridge Alliance calling for the extension and redesignation of TPS for Haiti,” the organization continued in the statement. “This is another example of ‘Anpil men, chay pa lou.’” It is a Haitian Creole phase that translates to, “many hands lighten the load.”
In the statement received by Daily Kos, Cameroon Advocacy Network Founding Member Taisha Saintil said the administration “not only made the morally right decision but also the one that makes the most sense for the United States,” citing the ties that many Haitian immigrants have in the U.S. Many have lived here for years and have U.S. citizen children and family members.
“As highlighted by a report by FWD.us, Haitians who are living in the U.S. and are currently eligible for TPS contribute $2.6 billion to our economy each year, and 81% of them are in the labor force, providing essential services at a time of worker shortages and high inflation,” Saintil said. “This redesignation of TPS allows more Haitians in the U.S. to enroll in the program and contribute their skills and talents to American communities and the American workforce. As we continue to fight with our allies to ensure the total eradication of anti-Blackness within the immigration system, we take this moment today to thank the administration for this decision.”
DHS said it “extended and redesignated Haiti for TPS after consultation with interagency partners and careful consideration of the extraordinary and temporary conditions in Haiti, including a prolonged political crisis; grave insecurity and gang crime that worsened a dire economic situation; a lack of access to food, water, fuel and health care during a resurgence of cholera; and the recent catastrophic earthquakes.” Signed into law under George H.W. Bush, the federal government has discretion to designate a nation for TPS if conditions make it too unsafe for nationals to return.
“With conditions so dire in Haiti, this announcement brings enormous relief to many community members who have survived some of the worst crises imaginable,” said Lora Adams, co-coordinator of the TPS-DED Administrative Advocacy Coalition. “With armed groups kidnapping Haitians, terrorizing Haiti, and committing violent crimes, it was important that the United States upheld its commitments to protect vulnerable Haitians in need of safety. We applaud the Biden administration for showing courage and making sure that the United States lives up to our best values in welcoming Haitians.”
“The Biden administration's treatment of Haitian migrants has previously garnered criticism from progressives,” CBS News noted, but also from affected individuals too. Despite advocates making victims available for interviews with the investigators probing last year’s Del Rio abuses, not one single migrant was a part of the 500-page report. Lawmakers are now asking border officials to explain how in the world they pulled that off. Federal immigration officials have also repeatedly, and unjustly, blocked detained Haitian migrants from accessing legal help.
“We acknowledge that there is much work to be done to welcome all people in need of protection with dignity and center the voices and narratives of Black migrants and immigrants,” Jozef continued. “As we celebrate, we urge for the swift release of the Federal Register Notice as well as the release of all Haitians currently in immigration detention centers. We also call for the same protection for all deserving of safety, such as Nationals from Mauritania, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and others.”
New polling released by the #WelcomeWithDignity campaign this week shows continued support for U.S. asylum rights. The polling follows a disastrous midterm result for xenophobes who’d invested tens of millions of dollars in racist messaging that largely flopped among voters in key battleground states.
“Nearly three-quarters of Americans (73.4%) either strongly or somewhat agree that the US should provide asylum to people fleeing persecution and/or violence in their home country according to a new poll conducted by the U.S. Immigration Policy Center (USIPC) at the University of California, San Diego and released Tuesday by the #WelcomeWithDignity asylum rights campaign,” a release said. “The poll of 1,000 Americans found majority support across the political spectrum, with 87% of Democrats, 74% of Independents and 57% Republicans expressing support for asylum.”
RELATED STORIES:
Biden admin to extend temporary protections for hundreds of thousands of at-risk immigrants
Biden admin was warned internally about Haitian deportations. Thousands have been deported anyway
ICE continues flights to Haiti as U.S. warns it's too dangerous for Americans to travel there
In a statement, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) cited “extraordinary and temporary conditions” in expanding and extending relief, including a “prolonged political crisis” following the assassination of the small nation’s president last year. The Biden administration’s decision Monday extends access to work permits and deportation relief for another 18 months, through August 2024. By also adjusting the existing eligibility date, another 110,000 Haitians already here as of Nov. 6 can also apply for protections in addition to the roughly 56,000 Haitians who currently have relief.
It’s a major win for families and advocates like Haitian Bridge Alliance, who have been steadily leading this call for relief. There’s no doubt this action will save lives.
RELATED STORY: Senate progressives call on Biden admin to protect Haitian immigrants as deadline looms
Campaign Action
“We welcome this much-needed announcement from the Biden administration,” said Haitian Bridge Alliance Executive Director Guerline Jozef in a statement received by Daily Kos. “We rejoice and celebrate with our Haitian siblings and stand undeterred, in solidarity as we continue to work with and for the Haitian and Haitian-American communities.” Most recently, the organization led a Nov. 22 letter supported by more than 400 organizations urging the Biden administration to expand and extend relief by a Dec. 5 deadline, and cited support from a number of leading senators. “Haiti’s TPS status is urgently warranted,” lawmakers had written.
“We are grateful for all our partner organizations, many of whom supported the letter led by the Haitian Bridge Alliance calling for the extension and redesignation of TPS for Haiti,” the organization continued in the statement. “This is another example of ‘Anpil men, chay pa lou.’” It is a Haitian Creole phase that translates to, “many hands lighten the load.”
In the statement received by Daily Kos, Cameroon Advocacy Network Founding Member Taisha Saintil said the administration “not only made the morally right decision but also the one that makes the most sense for the United States,” citing the ties that many Haitian immigrants have in the U.S. Many have lived here for years and have U.S. citizen children and family members.
“As highlighted by a report by FWD.us, Haitians who are living in the U.S. and are currently eligible for TPS contribute $2.6 billion to our economy each year, and 81% of them are in the labor force, providing essential services at a time of worker shortages and high inflation,” Saintil said. “This redesignation of TPS allows more Haitians in the U.S. to enroll in the program and contribute their skills and talents to American communities and the American workforce. As we continue to fight with our allies to ensure the total eradication of anti-Blackness within the immigration system, we take this moment today to thank the administration for this decision.”
DHS said it “extended and redesignated Haiti for TPS after consultation with interagency partners and careful consideration of the extraordinary and temporary conditions in Haiti, including a prolonged political crisis; grave insecurity and gang crime that worsened a dire economic situation; a lack of access to food, water, fuel and health care during a resurgence of cholera; and the recent catastrophic earthquakes.” Signed into law under George H.W. Bush, the federal government has discretion to designate a nation for TPS if conditions make it too unsafe for nationals to return.
“With conditions so dire in Haiti, this announcement brings enormous relief to many community members who have survived some of the worst crises imaginable,” said Lora Adams, co-coordinator of the TPS-DED Administrative Advocacy Coalition. “With armed groups kidnapping Haitians, terrorizing Haiti, and committing violent crimes, it was important that the United States upheld its commitments to protect vulnerable Haitians in need of safety. We applaud the Biden administration for showing courage and making sure that the United States lives up to our best values in welcoming Haitians.”
“The Biden administration's treatment of Haitian migrants has previously garnered criticism from progressives,” CBS News noted, but also from affected individuals too. Despite advocates making victims available for interviews with the investigators probing last year’s Del Rio abuses, not one single migrant was a part of the 500-page report. Lawmakers are now asking border officials to explain how in the world they pulled that off. Federal immigration officials have also repeatedly, and unjustly, blocked detained Haitian migrants from accessing legal help.
“We acknowledge that there is much work to be done to welcome all people in need of protection with dignity and center the voices and narratives of Black migrants and immigrants,” Jozef continued. “As we celebrate, we urge for the swift release of the Federal Register Notice as well as the release of all Haitians currently in immigration detention centers. We also call for the same protection for all deserving of safety, such as Nationals from Mauritania, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and others.”
New polling released by the #WelcomeWithDignity campaign this week shows continued support for U.S. asylum rights. The polling follows a disastrous midterm result for xenophobes who’d invested tens of millions of dollars in racist messaging that largely flopped among voters in key battleground states.
“Nearly three-quarters of Americans (73.4%) either strongly or somewhat agree that the US should provide asylum to people fleeing persecution and/or violence in their home country according to a new poll conducted by the U.S. Immigration Policy Center (USIPC) at the University of California, San Diego and released Tuesday by the #WelcomeWithDignity asylum rights campaign,” a release said. “The poll of 1,000 Americans found majority support across the political spectrum, with 87% of Democrats, 74% of Independents and 57% Republicans expressing support for asylum.”
RELATED STORIES:
Biden admin to extend temporary protections for hundreds of thousands of at-risk immigrants
Biden admin was warned internally about Haitian deportations. Thousands have been deported anyway
ICE continues flights to Haiti as U.S. warns it's too dangerous for Americans to travel there