CISPES expresses our deep solidarity with the people of Haiti following the Trump Administration's inhumane decision to cancel Temporary Protected Status for approximately 59,000 Haitian immigrants currently living in the United States.

Haiti was granted TPS following a devastating earthquake in 2010, much like El Salvador in 2001. But the connections go far deeper.

Both countries have survived brutal military dictatorships propped up by the U.S. Both have been playgrounds for transnational corporations to experiment with maximum exploitation for maximum profit. Both are sites of continued U.S. interference in their sovereign democratic affairs. And both are home to inspiring popular resistance and liberation movements.

CISPES is proud to be part of the National TPS Alliance, which has and will continue to reject any attempt to divide the immigrant rights movement through anti-black racism. We will continue the fight to keep Haitian families together and win permanent residence for all TPS holders.

If you haven't called your Representative to sign on to the American Promise Act, please do so today.

National TPS Alliance Press Release

Los Angeles, CA // New York, NY // Washington, DC –– The National TPS Alliance denounces the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)’s decision to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for almost 60,000 Haitians. Just before Thanksgiving, hundreds of thousands of U.S. Citizens, Legal Permanent Residents, and TPS holders born in Haiti have been left to consider the near future separation of their families.

This decision negatively affects not only the entire Haitian and the Haitian-American community, but also adds to the growing fears of the entire TPS community. The National TPS Alliance, a growing network led by TPS holders and their families, strongly rejects this and prior DHS decisions on TPS (Honduras, Nicaragua, Sudan, Guinea, Sierra Leone, and others), and encourages the general public and policy-makers to support recent legislation in the Senate and House that provide a clear path towards Legal Permanent Resident (LPR) status for all TPS holders.

Last week, Senator Christopher Van Hollen (MD) and 9 other Senators introduced S. 2144, the “SECURE Act”. Representative Nydia Velazquez (NY) and 17 other Members of Congress had previously introduced H.R. 4253, the “American Promise Act” in the House. The National TPS Alliance strongly endorses both bills, which align with our legislative principles, and would allow most Haitian and other TPS holders, to apply for adjustment of status. Legal Permanent Residency is the only “permanent solution” that will bring rightful security to hundreds of thousands of TPS holders and their U.S. Citizen children.

Members of the National TPS Alliance issued the following statements:

Guerline Jozef, Haitian Bridge Alliance: “It feels like the earthquake all over again. The Haitian community is heartbroken. I am receiving calls from all over: New York, Florida, California. To be hit with this on the eve of Thanksgiving is just cruel. Haitian-American families and TPS holders deserve better. The fight is not yet over. We will continue to work with our allies and push congress for a path to  permanent residency for all TPS holders.”

Jose Palma, Massachusetts TPS Committee Coordinator: “While all immigrants are being scapegoated, Haitian and Nicaraguan TPS holders are simultaneously told to collectively pay millions of dollars before facing the threat of deportation. TPS holders have naturally planted their roots in this country and deserve better. The Haiti decision proves that we must pass legislation that protects the entire TPS holder community and ensure their families and communities are kept together. In its current form, the SECURE act accomplishes this and we are ready to fully support it across the country and in the Senate.”

Cecilia Martinez, Suffolk, NY TPS Coordinator: “Central American TPS holders stand in solidarity with our Haitian family members, and together with other TPS holders demand a legislative remedy to this most recent attack on the TPS holder community. The Secure Act introduced by Senator Van Hollen, alongside the American Promise Act authored by Representative Velazquez are currently the most comprehensive pieces of legislation that aim to protect all TPS holders. They align with our network’s legislative principles and we hope this outrageous decision at least steers the conversation towards a just resolution for those of us left in limbo and fear.”

Media Contact: Armando Carmona, 323-250-3018; [email protected]

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