Miami, FL – Marleine Bastien, Executive Director of Famn Ayisyen Nan Miyami (Haitian Women of Miami, FANM), issued the following statement after the Senate voted to reopen the government today, calling on Congress to ensure Temporary Protected Status (TPS) recipients are part of a final agreement to provide a permanent immigration solution for more than a million people, including Dreamers and their families.
Although Congress is voting to reopen the government today, members of Congress should not forget the plight of more than 300,000 TPS holders moving forward – people whose lives have been upended by the Trump Administration’s decision to cancel the TPS status that allows them to work, pay taxes, and remain united with their families.
We call on members of Congress to ensure that all TPS holders are afforded a viable and meaningful permanent solution to their immigration status. Both Democrats and Republicans need to stand by these families – including 50,000 Haitian nationals and their 27,000 American children – so that any final agreement protects them from deportation and provides a path to citizenship. As February 8th is quickly approaching – during this moment of greatest need – our TPS community should not be forgotten.
