We Stand With Us

Make Phone Calls, Make an Impact

Get Temporary Protected Status Restored for Haitians

Urge your senators to support S.4814, which will reinstate TPS through 2029.

Call 202-224-3121

This number works every day, recess included: it connects you to your senators' offices, where staff tally every call.

Calling a Democratic senator? Use this script

Hi, my name is [name], and I’m a constituent from [city, zip]. I’m calling to urge Senator [last name] to force a vote on S.4814 and restore temporary protected status for our 330,000 Haitian neighbors. Deportation flights have already begun. These people have done nothing wrong; they’ve been important members of our communities and have been working in critical job sectors like healthcare while paying taxes and following the law. Our local economy will suffer without them. They were given the legal right to be here and should be allowed to stay, not now be treated like criminals and sent back to a country facing extreme violence and unrest. Thank you for your consideration.

Calling a Republican senator? Use this script

Hi, my name is [name], and I’m a constituent from [city, zip]. I’m calling to urge Senator [last name] to support S.4814 and restore temporary protected status for 330,000 Haitians. These people have done nothing wrong; they’ve been important members of our communities and have been working in critical job sectors like healthcare while paying taxes and following the law. Our local economy will suffer without them. They were given the legal right to be here and should be allowed to stay, not now be treated like criminals and sent back to a country facing extreme violence and unrest. Thank you for your consideration.

The Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti hosts a virtual phone bank EVERY TUESDAY from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. They provide call scripts, relevant stats, and contact info for all senators. Join here: bit.ly/3NqE5nz

Choose humanity over hate

Stand With Our Haitian Neighbors

Take action Learn more
Close-up of a person standing on pavement stenciled with the word CHANGE

You can make a difference.

Temporary protected status (TPS) has just ended for ~ 330,000 Haitians. It's not safe for them to return home; we can, and need to, act now.

Urge Your Senator to Pass S.4814

In April, the House of Representatives passed the three-year extension of TPS, with 10 Republicans joining Democrats in voting yes. We only need to flip four Republicans for it to pass in the Senate. Call 202-224-3121 to get connected and leave a message so they know where you stand.

Support Relevant Organizations

There are already groups in our communities working hard to provide Haitian families with legal support, transportation, and other assistance. Make a donation, or volunteer your time or skills; a single action can change a life.

Join our Voice Squad

The Haitian issue is undercovered by journalists and even our politicians. We can change that by sharing how we support our Haitian neighbors and that others should as well. It only takes a few minutes to send a message that will inspire others to act.

Organizations You Can Support

Haitian Bridge Alliance

Also known as “The Bridge,” this national nonprofit community organization fights for fair and humane immigration policies. It offers humanitarian, legal, and social services and focuses on issues that affect Black migrants.

Haitian Support Center

This organization is in Springfield, Ohio, which has an extensive Haitian population. It provides services aimed at meeting the Haitians' needs and helping them integrate, such as job training, English lessons, driving workshops, and legal services.

Haitian Americans United for Progress

HAUP serves individuals in New York City and the Tri-State area. It offers health programs and family assistance and resettlement services, as well as adult education and youth programs.

Frequently Asked Questions

There are several common questions asked and claims made when it comes to this topic. We want to help people understand the facts, as well as the impact behind what's taking place.

TPS was always meant to be temporary. Why should we extend it again?
Congress extends ‘temporary’ laws all the time; the 2017 tax cuts were temporary too, and nobody calls extending those a betrayal of the word. These families came legally because their home was dangerous. It still is; the State Department tells Americans not to even visit. A permanent path to citizenship is the real fix, and Congress should build one. Today's job is simpler: don't expel these families while we argue about the rest.
What happens to the children of the Haitians who are sent back?
For many of the children, there is no “back” to Haiti. They were born here and have lived here their whole lives. These parents now face an impossible choice between leaving their children behind and bringing them to a country overrun by gang violence. We cannot sit on the sidelines during this mass separation of families who came here legally and just want to keep living and working safely.
The economy is important to me. How does allowing the Haitians to stay affect it?
Losing these workers hurts you, not just them. About 200,000 Haitian TPS holders are in the American workforce, including 13,000 nursing assistants and 15,000 farm workers, and there is no one lined up to cover their shifts. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce asked the Senate to pass this bill. And in Ohio, Republican governor Mike DeWine (a Trump supporter) and Springfield's Republican mayor Rob Rue have both said deporting these workers is a mistake. Protecting them isn't charity. They work, they pay taxes, and America is short-staffed without them. There is no economic case for forcing them out. There never was.
We can't accept everyone into America.
We agree: America cannot take every single individual who wants to come. But that is not the question here. These families are already here, legally, and many have been for years; they registered, passed background checks, paid fees, and renewed on schedule. The question is whether America un-invites people who did everything asked of them. A country that punishes the ones who followed the rules teaches everyone to break them, and shows that treating humans with dignity is not a priority.
I've heard about negative things in Springfield, Ohio that make me concerned about Haitians.
Those stories were debunked by Springfield's Republican mayor, Ohio's Republican governor, and the city's own police. They were rumors spread online and repeated by politicians to divide us while dehumanizing and scapegoating innocent individuals. We need to focus on uniting.
Why don't the Haitians just apply for asylum so they can stay?
Some have. However, the current administration has made many changes to make it more difficult to apply for and be granted asylum.

Why We Should Care

“

I get up at 5am every morning and I take two buses to work to clean the rooms of the residents. I give my heart...I cannot return to Haiti. It is not safe. I'm afraid I would be killed.

Haitian nursing-home housekeeper, New York
The Guardian
“

Haiti today is overrun by violent gangs... It is neither safe nor humane to force our neighbors back into those conditions.

Rep. Carlos Giménez (R-FL), whose family fled Cuba
The Guardian
“

This is where I became an adult, established my time, worked, paid taxes, and built my family...I'm not asking for special treatment. I'm asking for a fair opportunity to continue supporting my family and contributing to the country that has been my home since 2000."

Haitian immigrant, New York
The Guardian

Learn More

The Guardian

“We're human beings”: Haitians in the US fear family separation and deportation to violence

More than 330,000 Haitians in the US are set to lose their ability to legally work and live in the country as the Trump administration seeks to terminate their temporary protected status. An estimated 13,000 are nursing assistants who care for 65,000 patients each day.

Continue reading →
Springfield News-Sun

Some Springfield Haitians summoned to ICE office, outfitted with ankle monitors

Several Haitians in Springfield have received letters from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security telling them to go to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Cincinnati field office for an "in-person check-in" during which they are outfitted with ankle monitors, according to local advocates.

Continue reading →
PBS NewsHour

They lost their work permits and their legal status. Returning to Haiti is still “unimaginable”

Approximately 350,000 Haitians and Syrians who have remade their lives in the United States are now at a crossroads. Their work permits and legal status have expired, yet their home countries haven't recovered from the crises that drove them to seek Temporary Protected Status protections.

Continue reading →

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