Haiti

COMMENTARY The gang burning of one of Haiti's most iconic landmarks is more brazen destruction not just of the country — but of Haitians' self-esteem, which President Trump has also assailed.

Haiti's once-illustrious Grand Hôtel Oloffson has been burned down by gangs this past weekend. The beloved Gothic gingerbread home in Port-au-Prince that inspired books, hosted parties until dawn and attracted visitors from Mick Jagger to Haitian presidents. Hundreds mourned the news as it began to spread across social media.

A federal judge in New York has blocked the Trump administration from ending temporary legal status for more than 500,000 Haitians who are already in the United States.

The decision is based on the improved environmental situation in Haiti, which DHS say is deemed safe for return. TPS allows people in the US to live and work legally if their native countries are deemed unsafe due to natural disaster or civil strife.

Immigrant advocates and others say President Donald Trump’s aggressive deportation policies are fostering a climate of “fear” in South Florida’s immigrant communities, mainly with his decision to abruptly end temporary visas for hundreds of thousands of legal U.S. residents.

In an interview Saturday on CNN, the South Florida Republican lawmaker said he has directly relayed his concerns about President Donald Trump’s deportation enforcement strategy with Administration officials.

Cuban-American Republicans, U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar and state Sen. Ileana Garcia, are openly criticizing President Trump's immigration policies.

Sick children, families and businesses are among the many people in Haiti, a country plagued by gang violence, likely to be hit hard by a U.S. travel ban.

Haitian and Venezuelan community leaders condemned President Donald Trump’s newly announced travel ban policy that will impact hundreds of thousands of South Florida families with ties to both countries.

President Donald Trump on Wednesday resurrected a hallmark policy of his first term, announcing that citizens of 12 countries — including Haiti — would be banned from visiting the United States. Those from Cuba and Venezuela, along with five other countries would face heightened restrictions.

After the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that the Trump administration can, for now, end humanitarian parole for half a million migrants, immigration advocates insist the legal battle is not over — and believe it will end sooner than later, now in their favor. Most of the beneficiaries, who come from Cuba, Haiti, Venezuela and Nicaragua, are in Florida.

Haiti's desperate interim government is reportedly turning to foreign mercenaries to defeat the country's powerful gangs — but key Caribbean leaders say the route now should be dialogue.