Biden Administration Must Immediately Reinstate Temporary Protected Status for Haiti

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 20, 2021
Contact: Stephen Peters, [email protected]

WASHINGTON — The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and more than 100 organizations today called on the Biden administration to immediately redesignate Haiti for Temporary Protected Status (TPS), considering the country’s widespread violence, civil and political unrest, economic and humanitarian strife, the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, and a lack of available vaccines.

“According to Human Rights Watch’s 2021 World Report, Haiti is currently experiencing one of the worst outbreaks of violence in decades. Haitians of all ages face powerful gangs who rule with impunity and in some cases, with government complicity. The lack of rule of law also makes it difficult to hold those responsible for the ever-increasing violence accountable,” the groups wrote.

Haiti was previously given TPS designation under the Obama administration in the aftermath of the devastating 2010 earthquake. The designation was abruptly terminated by the Trump administration in November 2017 despite grave circumstances in the country, which included a cholera outbreak, deadly natural disasters, widespread food insecurity, and marked political violence. In the letter, the organizations urged the Biden administration to follow through on a campaign promise made in October 2020 to take several actions, including immediately reviewing the Trump administration’s decision to terminate TPS for Haiti.

“If we expect allies in Haiti and around the world to heed our calls for democracy and human rights, then we too must comply with international norms — including not deporting persons to conflict zones during a global pandemic. Today, the circumstances in Haiti are dire, and deporting Haitians to a country struggling to get its political footing will only further destabilize it,” the organizations continued.

The full letter and list of signatories can be found here.

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 220 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.

###