On Thursday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ended deportation protections for Haitians in the United States, posing a presumably legal challenge.
The memo is about to end the Temporary Protection Status (TPS) of Haitians. This prevents people who are unable to return to their country due to anxiety or natural disasters without fear of deportation.
An order from Homeland Security Secretary Christie Norm would end the status of roughly 520,000 Haitians in the United States
Just like the previous directive that “emptyed” the TP for Venezuelans, the DHS aimed to take the same measures on Haitians, denounced the previous administration for renewing protections in June .
“[Former President] With Biden [former Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro] Mallorcas tried to tie the Trump administration's hands by extending Haiti's temporary protected status for 18 months.
“We're returning integrity to the TPS system. The TPS system has been abused and exploited by illegal foreigners for decades. President Trump and Secretary Noam have reverted TPS to its original status. It's temporary.
The DHS pointed to the evolution of TPS in Haitians, which first fired in 2010, and the following year about 57,000 were registered with the TPS.
The Haitians were first designated by the TPS following a devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake.
However, after Haitian President Jovenel Moys was assassinated in 2021, his status was updated under the Biden administration amid civil unrest.
The DHS was sued Thursday in two different lawsuits challenging the deprivation of Venezuelans of TPS protection.
The method of depriving TPS was the same in both groups. That is, Noem's actions against Haiti could face similar legal challenges.
“Secretary's actions are illegal for multiple reasons. Initially, DHS has no authority to “escape” previous TPS extensions. The TPS Act strictly regulates the conditions under which TPS decisions can be made and establishes other procedural rules that must be followed in both expansion and termination.
He also said that Noem's decision was based on her view that TPS is illegal despite the creation of position under the law.
“Their neglect or secretary's decisions on TPS cannot even invalidate the law,” they wrote.
