Community Testimony During the Congressional Field Hearing on Haitian Tps Termination

Floor Speech

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Ms. PRESSLEY. Mr. Speaker, as part of the Congressional Field Hearing on Haitian TPS Termination held in the Massachusetts 7th Congressional District, members of the community were invited to discuss the importance of extending TPS for Haitian nationals. Therefore, I include in the Record their testimonies:

Dear Honorable Senator Markey and Honorable Congresswoman Pressley: In response to the slated termination of Temporary Protected Status (``TPS'') for Haitian nationals on February 3, 2026, Rian Immigrant Center respectfully submits the following remarks.

Rian Immigrant Center (``Rian'') is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization located in Boston, Massachusetts and serving immigrant and refugee communities across the Commonwealth, primarily through our Immigration Legal Services program. Rian, formerly the Irish Immigration Center and the Irish International Immigrant Center, was founded in 1989 by an Irish nun, Sister Lena Deevy, and a group of volunteer attorneys, to serve Boston's undocumented Irish community. Over the years, Rian has transformed into a vibrant center serving immigrants and refugees from over 125 countries worldwide, and reflecting the rich diversity of the foreign- born communities of Boston and throughout Massachusetts. In fact, early on in our organizational history, our founder Sister Lena understood the importance of building bridges between Boston's immigrant communities to find common ground and to forge mutual support; she understood that the success of Boston's Irish was inextricably linked to the success of all Boston's immigrant communities.

Currently and for the last several years, Rian serves immigrants and refugees from Haiti as its single largest client group. Twenty-three percent (519/2276 individuals) of all clients served by Rian in 2025 were of Haitian origin. Our clients include:

Haitians who have held TPS since the 2010 earthquake in Haiti that triggered the original Department of State designation, and who have held that status continuously for the past 15 years, forging deep roots in our community. These Haitian neighbors work legally, pay income, sales and other tax, and pay into our Social Security system;

More newly-arrived Haitian families escaping recent and ongoing waves of intolerable unrest in Haiti, seeking peaceful lives and an opportunity to provide safety to their children;

Haitians who were lawfully paroled into the United States to seek asylum from a tremendously backlogged system, who followed proper entry procedures only to now face termination of their protected status;

Haitians with TPS in large family units including U.S. citizen children who have never lived in Haiti and are culturally American; and

Haitians with medical complexities receiving life-saving or life-extending treatment in the Boston area, who would be unable to receive comparable care if returned to Haiti.

TPS is a life-line for Rim's Haitian client base. It provides protection from removal to a country indisputably in the throes of unrest. It provides access to work authorization, so that protected individuals can lawfully work, support their families, pay taxes to the federal and state government, and contribute to the economy. Most importantly, it is a status authorized by Congress for nationals of countries who cannot safely repatriate. Last year, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Noem announced that she was terminating Haitian TPS because conditions in Haiti no longer supported an ongoing designation. That decision was not based in any honest interpretation of the facts; it is indisputable that Haitian nationals cannot safely repatriate at this time. Rian represents many Haitian-American U.S. citizens petitioning to lawfully bring their spouses and minor children to the U.S. through the established family reunification process. Many of these families have been stuck in limbo and separated for five or more years, as the U.S. embassy remains closed to normal visa operations due to instability and dangerous conditions. The evacuation of consular officers from the U.S. embassy; the suspension of normal consular operations for several years; reports of active gunfire between U.S. Marines guarding the embassy and violent gang members; and Department of State-issued travel warnings for Haiti all point to the inaccurate, if not flagrantly deceptive nature of Secretary Noem's TPS termination announcement. To send Haitian citizens back to these actively unsafe conditions, while lying that the conditions support their safe return, would be a humanitarian travesty, one not rooted in reality and without any productive purpose. TPS, established by Congress, exists exactly to protect individuals from returning to such conditions our Haitian community members fear returning to today.

Rian urges Congress to advocate for an extension of TPS based on the indisputable facts on the ground. A country presumably following the rule of law cannot allow decisions on TPS terminations to be made wholly without factual support. Beyond this, we urge Congress to find a permanent solution for Haitian TPS holders who are so clearly at the whim of an anti-immigrant administration. Our Haitian neighbors in Greater Boston are tax-paying, law-abiding and productive community members, caring for our children and our elderly, staffing our reputable hospitals, and raising the next generation of U.S. citizen children ready to positively contribute to our society. We lose nothing, and stand only to gain, by allowing TPS holders a pathway to permanent status, or at least ongoing protection while the emergency conditions in Haiti exist, as Congress intended in establishing TPS in the first place. Respectfully submitted, Jacqueline Kelley, On behalf of Rian Immigrant Center. __________

To Whom It May Concern: My name is Ruthzee Louijeune, and I am an At-Large City Councilor representing all of Boston, Massachusetts. I submit this testimony, not only for myself, but on behalf of the Haitian residents of Boston whose lives, families, and livelihoods are directly threatened by the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS). Boston is home to approximately 16,000 Haitian residents, making it the 2nd largest Haitian community per capita in the United States. The decision to end TPS would be a devastating disruption to the social and economic fabric of our city.

In recent weeks and months, my office has been inundated with calls, emails, and walk-ins from constituents who are afraid, confused, and desperate for guidance regarding TPS. They are asking about legal resources, immigration attorneys, emergency funds, and whether it is safe to continue going to work. Many are afraid to leave their homes. Others are facing the immediate loss of income because their work permits have expired and they are legally barred from working, despite having jobs and employers who need them.

One constituent told us, ``My main concern is that I don't want to be dragged on the street and locked up. I am thinking of leaving, but I can't go back to Haiti. Can you please help me find another country to go to? I don't know if I will be able to sell my home before the due dates. I don't know what to do for my son. Please help me.''

Another constituent asked our office, ``Do you think I should remove my money from the bank?''

These are only a few samples that showcase the widespread fear, panic, and instability being experienced by families who have spent years building safe and productive lives in Boston. Ending TPS will result in the breaking apart of families, including households where children are U.S. citizens and parents are long-time residents and workers in our city. Policies that force parents to choose between deportation and leaving their children behind is an unamerican value that we must vigorously fight against.

The termination of TPS also threatens Boston's economy as they are our essential workers in healthcare, food service, construction, childcare, transportation, and home health care. As a result, we have begun to hear that employers across the city are already experiencing related workforce shortages.

TPS exists precisely for circumstances like Haiti's political instability, violence, and brutality among other economic and ecological disasters.

Our office continues to receive urgent calls from constituents seeking referrals and emergency financial assistance. The silver lining is that neighbors are stepping in to help one another with assistance for rent, food, and basic necessities, even while community organizations and faith groups are stretched beyond capacity trying to respond to this growing crisis.

Boston has long been a city that values immigrants and recognizes their role in our shared future. Please find compassion and empathy to ensure families are not forced into the shadows, separated from their loved ones, or pushed into harm's way by the termination of TPS. Everyone deserves stability and the opportunity to build a safe life.

I sincerely urge the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to consider extending Temporary Protected Status for Haitians to remain safe, employed, and united with their families. Sincerely, Ruthzee Louijeune, Boston City Councilor At-Large. __________

My father was a proud Jewish American and serviceman who fought in Okinawa. During the last years of his life, he was bound to a wheelchair and unable to perform daily tasks independently. The man who bathed him, dressed him, prepared his food, pushed his wheelchair and drove him to appointments was a skilled and compassionate person. Most of all, this man respected and showed love for my dad. He lived an honest life, worked 24 hours a day, 7 days a week--and performed a job that was desperately needed. This man who kept my father alive was an immigrant with temporary status.

Removing temporary status from people who fled hardship, seek a better life, and contribute to our families and communities is both mean-spirited and illogical. What kind of a nation are we? My father would be ashamed of this country where some of his relatives found refuge before and after the Holocaust. What kind of a nation are we if we do not to allow those seeking safety or a better life to live among us and do the work they choose, often jobs that our citizens aren't choosing? Taking away TPS status makes no sense on either a moral or practical level. It is hateful and contrary to the country my father fought for and was so proud of. __________

To Sen. Ed Markey, Rep. Ayanna Pressley, and Whom It May Concern: Haitian Temporary Protected Status is critical to the safety and stability of families across Boston. At a time when Haiti continues to face widespread violence, political instability, and humanitarian crises, ending or weakening TPS would place families in harm's way and destabilize our neighborhoods.

In Boston, Haitian TPS holders are essential workers in our healthcare system, schools, childcare centers, construction sites, restaurants, and small businesses. They are parents of Boston Public Schools students, renters and homeowners, and longtime residents who contribute every day to the strength of our city. Treating their status as temporary ignores the reality of their lives and their deep roots here.

I stand with Boston's Haitian community, local advocates, and faith leaders calling for an extension of Haitian TPS and permanent protections.

Our city is stronger when families can live without fear and we will continue to stand with immigrant communities who call Boston home. Respectfully, Julia Mejia, Boston City Councilor At-Large. __________

My name is Maria Teresa Nagel, I am the Director of Immigrant Affairs in the City of Somerville, MA, and I am here in strong opposition to the termination of TPS for Haitians.

Haitians have a long and proud history of commitment to the United States, dating back to the Chasseurs--Haitian soldiers who fought alongside U.S. forces during the Revolutionary War. Since then, more than one million Haitians have made this country their home. Today, over 80,000 Haitians live in Massachusetts alone, where they play an outsized and indispensable role in our healthcare and education systems.

They are our nurses, home health aides, and doctors. They are our teachers, teachers' assistants, and family liaisons. They care for our children, our elders, and our most vulnerable neighbors. They are essential to our economy, our communities, and the cultural fabric of this nation.

After the catastrophic earthquake in 2010--an event that affected more than three million people and claimed over 200,000 lives--the United States granted Temporary Protected Status to Haitians already living here. At the time, the Secretary of Homeland Security described the disaster as one of ``historic proportions'' and acknowledged that the ``personal safety'' of Haitians would be endangered if they were forced to return. Sixteen years later, Haiti continues to endure extraordinary hardship. Corruption, devastating hurricanes, political instability, and widespread civil unrest have only deepened the crisis. The dangers that once justified TPS have not disappeared, they have intensified. Meanwhile, the lives of Haitian TPS holders have become inseparable from our own. They have built families, careers, and communities here. This is their home. Ending TPS for Haiti would tear 330,000 people--our neighbors, coworkers, parents, and caregivers--from the communities they sustain. It would destabilize families, devastate local economies, and severely weaken critical sectors like healthcare, retail, and education that all of us rely on. And it would do so in direct contradiction of the law, with full knowledge that the extraordinary and unsafe conditions in Haiti persist.

No one, no one, will benefit from ending TPS for Haitians this February. The consequences will be profound and far- reaching, and the cost will be borne by all of us. Most of all, it will mark a failure of our moral responsibility and our legal obligations.

I urge the federal government to reconsider this termination--for the safety of our neighbors, the stability of our economy, and the values we claim as the greatest nation on Earth. Thank you.

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