“It was racism that motivated the termination of TPS, but it is the values of family unity, equality, and inclusion that must triumph.”
The National TPS Alliance announced plans for a major mobilization in Washington, DC on February 12 to demand TPS justice and a permanent solution for TPS holders from all 13 countries. TPS families representing all thirteen (13) countries designated with “TPS” will converge in Washington, DC to send a message to President Trump and the new Congress. They will be joined by powerful labor coalitions such as Working Families United and a growing list of allies from across the country.
“The most recent proposal to give a few TPS holders a mere 3-year extension is a disgrace,” said Jose Palma, TPS Holder from El Salvador and Spokesperson with the National TPS Alliance. “The TPS Alliance stands with all TPS holders and are fighting for a permanent solution for our families. Anything less than a permanent solution is a slap-in-the face to the decades we have given to this country, contributed and to the lives we have built” he concluded.
“We’re not bargaining chips. And on February 12 you’ll hear from us in the halls of Congress and in the streets of Washington, DC. Beautiful communities from across the US are joining together and our voices will be heard. Those who currently have TPS and DACA stand together, many of our children are DACA recipients and we are united in the national effort for a permanent solution”said Veronica Giron, TPS Holder & spokesperson with the National TPS Alliance.
“I am a TPS holder. My son has DACA and my youngest Daughter is a US Citizen. We have lived in this country for decades. We are a ‘mixed status’ household that refuses to be divided by Trump’s racist rhetoric” said Donis Hernandez, TPS Holder and Resident of Las Vegas. “On February 12, we’ll take our message to the U.S. Congress. It was racism that motivated the termination of TPS, but it is the values of family unity, equality, and inclusion that must triumph.”
Reyna Sorto, a member of International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 51 and the Working Families Coalition of unions participating in the mobilization says, “I’ve been a member of my union for years and together we’ll be marching to protect the future of workers with TPS and the rights of all workers. To attack those of us with TPS is to try to lower the rights of everyone and that’s not something we’re going to allow.”
Background:
In his first two years in office, President Trump moved swiftly to strip the legal status of nearly half a million TPS holders from half a dozen countries. After decades of periodic background checks and working with a legal status and work permits, TPS holders and their families have been left in limbo by the Trump administration’s unconstitutional termination of TPS.
TPS families, workers, business owners and their children, many of whom are DACA recipients and mixed status families are calling on the incoming U.S. Congress to protect TPS and create a pathway to permanent residency for TPS holders and protect their families from imminent separation. In 2018 the National TPS Alliance endorsed the American Promise Act authored byRep. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY), the only TPS legislation that ensures individuals from all 13 countries issued TPS are protected and provides a pathway to permanent residency.
