Letter to the Hon. Rex Tillerson, Secretary of State, the Hon. John F. Kelly, Secretary of Homeland Security - Extend Temporary Protected Status for Eligible Haitian Nationals Residing in the United States

Letter

We write to respectfully request that you extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for eligible Haitian nationals residing in the United States. Currently TPS for Haitian nationals is set to expire on July 22, 2017. In light of the continued devastation caused by Hurricane Matthew in 2016 and the ongoing cholera epidemic, we do not believe it is safe or humane to deport non-violent Haitian nationals back to Haiti at this time.

Hurricane Matthew caused widespread devastation that affected more than 2 million people, damaged tens of thousands of homes, schools, and other buildings, destroyed agricultural crops and public water systems, and increased communities' vulnerability to waterborne diseases, like cholera.

Temporary Protected Status (TPS) was created for precisely this reason - to offer temporary, humane protection to foreign nationals living in the U.S. when extraordinary conditions make it impossible for them to return home. We believe the continued widespread damage and destruction in Haiti make these people eligible for continued TPS designation, and we urge you to swiftly consider extending it past the current deadline of July 22, 2017.

We believe this is again the safest route to avoid further burdening the Haitian government in this time of severe distress. Current law already provides strict eligibility criteria to protect our national security, such as excluding criminals from this designation. TPS is not a pathway to citizenship, nor is it a means for bringing over relatives. When the TPS designation of a country is terminated, those foreign nationals revert to the immigration status they held before the designation was granted.

In short, TPS is a temporary, humane, compassionate response that the U.S. can make in addition to all the other assistance we are providing in the region. We must assist the victims of this natural disaster and ongoing epidemic. Thank you for your consideration.

Source