Justice for Haitian Immigrants

Written on: November 22, 2017

Dear Sisters, GN Associates, Colleagues and Friends,

Please consider taking this action on behalf of our Haitian neighbors.

Act now: Save Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians.  TAKE ACTION

Urge the Department of Homeland Security to extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haiti, for 18 months.

As a person of faith, and a member of the Justice for Immigrants coalition, I ask you to urge the Administration to provide an 18-month extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haiti. Additionally, I ask you to support a legislative solution in Congress that will preserve the ability of TPS recipients to continue living and working legally in the U.S.
TPS is a temporary, renewable, and statutorily authorized immigration status that allows individuals to remain and work lawfully in the U.S. during a period in which it is deemed unsafe for nationals of that country to return home. While the current designation for Haiti is set to expire in January 2018, the Department of Homeland Security is required to make a decision to terminate or extend TPS for Haiti by November 23, 2017.
As discussed in the USCCB/MRS trip report, Haiti’s Ongoing Road to Recovery: The Necessity of an Extension of Temporary Protected Status, an extension of TPS for Haiti is vital at this time. Terminating TPS would potentially destabilize the small nation, derail its path to recovery, and possibly harm those returned. Furthermore, if TPS is terminated, numerous families will be torn apart. The Catholic Church ministers to and serves many of these families around the country. We know that this issue affects immigrant children and U.S. citizen children alike.
Send the following message now to voice your support for and solidarity with Haitian TPS recipients and their families.

As a person of faith, and a member of Justice for Immigrants coalition, I ask that the Department of Homeland Security provide an 18-month extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haiti. Haiti is not yet in a position to safely and adequately accom¬modate the return of 50,000 nationals who are currently TPS recipients. The country is still struggling to rebuild from the 2010 earthquake and subsequent hurricanes, meanwhile food insecurity, poor sanitation, and the ongoing cholera epidemic remain significant barriers to Haiti’s full recovery.
As a person of faith, I am also very concerned with the family separation that would occur should you terminate TPS for Haiti. We know that this issue affects immigrant children and U.S. citizen children alike. In fact, if TPS is terminated for Haiti, approximately 27,000 U.S. citizen children will face being separated from their families. If children choose to remain with their parents and leave the U.S., they will jeopardize their bright future in the only country they know.
I believe our nation has a moral responsibility to provide continued temporary protection until TPS holders’ return and reintegration can be safely accomplished. I ask you to show compassion and patience during Haiti’s ongoing path to recovery.

I also hope that Congress will take leadership on this issue and consider the importance of TPS for families and for our communities. I ask that you work with immediacy to find a legislative solution for families with TPS members.

The Catholic community stands ready to continue to welcome Haitian TPS recipients, along with all immigrants and refugees, into our parishes and communities.

To read more about our own efforts to help Haiti recover, please visit the following posts. We welcome your contributions to assist us in helping Haiti recover and improve. Click here to donate

SOIL Project for Haiti

ECO- SPIRITUALITY GROUP: SOIL update

This entry was posted in With a Heart for Justice and tagged: Catholic Community, communities, Congress, Department of Homeland Security, DHS, Haiti, Haitians, Justice for Immigrants, legislation, parishes, Temporary Protected Status, TPS, welcome