Last week, the Biden administration moved to extend Temporary Protective Status (TPS) designation for Haitians for an additional 18 months. TPS is an immigration status for foreign-born individuals who are unable to return to certain countries due to unsafe conditions such as armed conflict or environmental disaster.
In a letter to the Biden administration in May, MLRI's Immigration team urged officials to reinstate TPS designation, explaining why it is unsafe for Haitians to return to "one of the most dangerous countries in the world at a time when it sees record levels of deadly violence." The letter goes on to state "given that Haiti has no formal government, returned families would be vulnerable to gangs who run 80% of Port au Prince and are known for using systemic rape, brutal murder, and kidnapping to control the terrorized and starving Haitians who were unable to flee the country... These are the very sorts of conditions that TPS, a humanitarian safety valve, is supposed to address."
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