Haiti24news.com
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Trump administration announced Thursday it will terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for approximately 500,000 Haitian nationals, revoking their legal protections and exposing them to deportation as early as August. The move reverses a Biden-era policy that expanded TPS for Haitians and others fleeing crises, marking the latest escalation in the administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement agenda.
Policy Reversal Sparks Outcry
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) cited the “exploitation” of the TPS program as justification, arguing that Haiti’s designation—first granted after the 2010 earthquake—has been improperly extended for over a decade. DHS claims the number of protected Haitians ballooned from 57,000 in 2011 to 520,694 by July 2023, a figure it attributes to lax enforcement. “The TPS system has become a backdoor for illegal immigration,” the agency stated, vowing to “restore integrity” to the process.
Critics blasted the decision as cruel and politically motivated. “Sending half a million people back to a country where gangs rule and children starve is unconscionable,” said Tessa Petit, executive director of the Florida Immigrant Coalition. “Haiti meets every criterion for protection—violence, disaster, and instability. This is about xenophobia, not policy.”
Haiti’s Collapse Looms Over Deportations
Haiti, already grappling with gang control of 85% of Port-au-Prince and over 5,600 homicides in 2023, faces a humanitarian catastrophe. More than 1 million people are displaced, many sheltering in squalid camps where sexual violence is rampant. Jean Negot Bonheur Delva, Haiti’s migration director, warned that mass returns would overwhelm the crippled nation. “We lack food, security, and infrastructure. These deportations will deepen misery,” he said, though he noted Haiti’s new commission to assist returnees.
Farah Larrieux, a TPS holder since 2010, called the decision a betrayal. “I built a business, paid taxes, and raised my kids here. Now I’m told to go back to a warzone?” said the South Florida communications firm owner. “America is discarding us like trash.”
Legal and Logistical Hurdles
While DHS aims to begin removals in August, mass deportations face significant challenges. TPS holders may seek alternative visas or asylum, and courts could delay proceedings. A similar move to strip protections from Venezuelans prompted a lawsuit Thursday by advocacy groups, who argue the administration violated due process.
The Biden administration had expanded TPS to cover 1 million immigrants from 17 crisis-stricken nations, including Ukraine, Afghanistan, and Sudan. Trump officials have systematically dismantled these protections, calling them “amnesty by another name.”
Regional Implications
Haiti’s government, already dependent on a fledgling U.N.-backed security force, fears a surge in returnees could destabilize the nation further. Just 21 Haitians were deported under Trump in 2024, but that number could skyrocket. “This isn’t policy—it’s a death sentence,” said Monique Clesca, a Port-au-Prince activist. “How can you deport people to a country with no functioning state?”
As legal battles loom, advocates vow to fight the order. “We’ll see them in court,” said Petit. “Humanity must prevail over politics.”
