With Temporary Protected Status (TPS) ending for Haitian immigrants by the end of the month, a Miramar-based Haitian group is urging Congress to pass legislation to spare hundreds of thousands of Haitians from being deported and returned to their violence-stricken homeland.
"This is not an issue that affects only TPS recipients — it affects all of us," said Kim Lamothe, Chairperson of Miramar Haitian American Residents and Business Owners, in a statement on Tuesday.
"This decision could separate families, destabilize workplaces, disrupt local businesses, and create fear and uncertainty within communities that Haitian immigrants have helped strengthen for decades," Lamothe said. "We call upon the United States Senate to pass S. 4814, which would provide a three-year extension of Temporary Protected Status for Haiti."
S. 4814 would reinstate the residency status for Haitians as well provide permanent paths for U.S. citizenship. The House narrowly approved the legislation, but it has stalled in the Senate.
The bill gained steam after the The U.S. Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision last month, allowed the Trump administration to end legal protections for migrants fleeing violence and natural disaster in Haiti and Syria through TPS.
An estimated 350,000 Haitians with TPS face deportation after Monday, July 27.
The Miramar Haitian American Residents and Business Owners group is urging Haitian TPS holders to speak to immigration attorneys and accredited legal service organizations for help.
