Brooklyn elected officers and advocates gathered in Flatbush final week to name for an extension to Short-term Protected Standing (TPS) for Haitian immigrants.
New York Metropolis has greater than 150,000 Haitian residents, most of whom reside in Brooklyn.
“Brooklyn’s Haitian neighborhood is deeply rooted and performs an integral half to the borough — from educators and healthcare professionals to small-business house owners and important employees. Stripping TPS would jeopardize these contributions and destabilize numerous lives,” mentioned Congressmember Yvette Clarke in a press release.
Clarke mentioned that TPS holders typically have U.S.-born kids, and revoking their standing might tear up households and houses in addition to have an effect on the native economic system. “TPS holders contribute considerably by means of taxes, commerce, and neighborhood engagement, and sending them again into an unsafe and unstable surroundings might have disastrous penalties — turning into a life-or-death scenario for a lot of Haitians in Brooklyn and throughout this nation,” mentioned Clarke.
“Our neighbors from Haiti got here right here in want of refuge from an intense string of catastrophe, disaster, and political instability, and we stand proudly by their facet in calling for an finish to the Trump administration’s effort to revoke TPS for Haiti,” mentioned Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso.
TPS permits immigrants from designated nations experiencing turmoil to reside and work legally in the US. Haiti was initially given TPS standing in response to the catastrophic earthquake that devastated the nation in January 2010, killing greater than 300,000 folks and displacing greater than 1.5 million. Since then, TPS for Haiti has been redesignated and prolonged quite a few instances due to further pure disasters, public well being crises, and political instability.
“Let’s be clear [about] actuality on the bottom: Haiti is a nation on the brink,” mentioned Jocelyn McCalla, government director of the Haitian American Basis for Democracy. “The State Division has issued a do-not-travel advisory due to unprecedented gang violence, kidnappings, and civil unrest.
“Haiti stays principally minimize off from the world as a result of worldwide journey is tough. Massive swaths of the capital of Port-au-Prince are below the management of violent gangs, resulting in a dysfunctional state unable to supply primary companies or safety for its residents.”
The rally passed off days earlier than the Trump administration initially sought to terminate TPS for an estimated 500,000 Haitians.
In February, the united statesDepartment of Homeland Safety (DHS) introduced it might terminate Haiti’s TPS standing efficient September 2, 2025. Nonetheless, a lawsuit filed by the Haitian Evangelical Clergy Affiliation compelled the courts to increase TPS for Haitians quickly — till February 2026.
“We’ve secured short-term respiration room till February 2026. Whereas it is a vital victory, our combat is way from over,” mentioned Councilmember Farah Louis on the rally. “Trump’s TPS termination is rooted in straight racism and xenophobia. It’s not coverage. This administration makes use of worry and scapegoating to divide us, however Brooklyn stands united. After they come for our Haitian neighbors with lies and hatred, they assault the very material of what makes Brooklyn robust.”
Assemblymember Phara Souffrant Forrest added that she was proud to face with Haiti and the contributions of its folks to the U.S. She additionally delivered an impassioned speech in Creole.
“Once we see that there’s a risk to TPS, now we have to know that this risk to 1 migrant nation can be an assault on all immigrants,” she mentioned.
