Some Immigrants Get to Remain in the US — For Now

A federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s efforts to end Temporary Protected Status for 300,000 recipients, providing momentary relief for immigrants from Sudan, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Haiti.

Judge Edward Chen of the 9th Circuit said there was “direct evidence” of racial animus on the part of the Trump administration toward non-white immigrants, pointing to remarks by President Trump characterizing Mexicans as rapists and claiming that Haitian immigrants “all have AIDS.” He also noted the president’s statement that Nigerians would never “go back to their huts” if they were allowed to settle down in the U.S.

Temporary Protected Status is extended to immigrants hailing from countries that have experienced natural disasters or war. The program was created in the 1990s, but the Trump administration has tried to end protections for the vast majority of recipients, arguing that they were never meant to become permanent residents.

The court’s ruling was celebrated by many in the immigrant rights community.

“This means they’ll be able to be protected, at least for a little while longer,” said Anu Joshi, the New York Immigration Coalition’s Director of Immigration Policy.

Sebastien Dejean, a Brooklyn resident and TPS recipient from Haiti, expressed ambivalence.

“I’m generally happy that the block has been issued for now. I just hope that something more permanent sticks,” he said.

Dejean said he knew of no TPS recipients who’d planned to return to Haiti once their status expired, suggesting that most planned to continue life here, without status, rather than return to a nation wracked by political and economic turmoil and still recovering from a 2010 earthquake.

“It's not that being undocumented would be good, but compared to going home I think it would be the best option for Haitians, to some degree,” he said.