Philly Haitians and allies march to demand protections as TPS expires
Protections expired for an estimated 350,000 Haitians, putting them at risk of deportation to a shattered homeland.
Dozens of Haitians and their allies rallied in Center City on Thursday, demanding that Pennsylvania’s U.S. senators help restore temporary protected status for thousands of people now in danger of deportation.
They gathered outside the office of U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick near 20th and Market Streets and planned to march to the officeof Sen. John Fetterman.
People held up signs that said, “Our Haitian community is here to stay,” even as protections and work permits have ended for about 350,000 Haitians in the U.S.
Speakers said TPS, as it’s known, is more than an immigration status, that it’s what allows neighbors, friends and family members to live here, to work, pay taxes and to help build the country.
The mood among his fellow local Haitians is grim, said Pastor Kenel Stevenson. “There is fear, fear of repatriation, of being returned to a place where there is no safety,“ he said.
Nearly 100 people had gathered as the marchers prepared to move east toward Fetterman’s office shortly before noon.
TPS has expired for an estimated 350,000 Haitians, ending their ability to legally work in this country and putting them at risk of deportation to a shattered homeland.
The U.S. government has told Americans not to go to Haiti, issuing its strongest “Do Not Travel” advisory, leaving Haitians wondering how returning home could be safe for them.
Hundreds of Haitian nationals have been told by immigration officials to appear at ICE offices to be fitted with ankle monitors, according to the ACLU.
In the Philadelphia Haitian community, comprising about 11,000 people, TPS protection has been crucial, advocates say.
Temporary Protected Status provides permission to live and work in the United States for people whose homelands are riven by war, natural disasters, epidemics, or other extraordinary circumstances.
In June, the Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration could terminate temporary protected status for countries like Haiti and Syria, putting more than 350,000 people from those lands at immediate risk of deportation.
More broadly, the ruling appears to make Department of Homeland Security decisions about TPS unreviewable by lower courts, creating deep uncertainty for the future. The White House has pledged to deport people who lose legal status, including those who had TPS.
Haitians are not the only population affected.
TPS is set to conclude for more than 170,000 people from El Salvador in September, and in October 100,000 from Ukraine face the same termination.
Advocates say the Trump administration’s promise of deportations will ihurt families that include spouses and children who are American citizens.
What’s more, immigration researchers and organizations say, the country will pay a financial price ― in lost taxes, wages, spending, and services, as large numbers of workers and dollars exit the U.S. economy.
The nation’s 1.3 million TPS-holders work at higher proportions than the country as a whole, pay billions of dollars each year in federal and local taxes, and contribute to the solvency of a Social Security system from which they’re unlikely to ever draw benefits.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
