In disappointing and shocking news this week, negotiations in ongoing litigation regarding Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designations for El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, and Sudan apparently broke down after 16 months of talks. What this means is that more than 300,000 immigrants—many with U.S. citizen children and deep ties to the U.S.—now face an uncertain future.
But this is an unnecessary dilemma. The Biden administration has already extended relief for two of the nations involved in the lawsuit, which stemmed from racist actions undertaken by the previous administration. More than 100 organizations say the Biden administration must now do the same for the remaining nations—and soon. A deadline is approaching in just months.
RELATED STORY: 300,000 immigrants at risk after TPS lawsuit negotiations break down: 'Heartbreaking for us all'
“The need for resolution is urgent, as the litigated TPS designations for all six countries expire on December 31st of this year,” The Temporary Protected Status Deferred Enforced Departure Administrative Advocacy Coalition (TPS-DED AAC) said in a statement received by Daily Kos. “The administration has designated Haiti and Sudan for TPS outside of the lawsuit, but they have not done so for El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, or Nepal.”
TPS designations protect certain immigrants already here from being returned to civil conflict, natural disaster, and other life-threatening conditions for a period of 18 months. It also allows them to work legally in order to support themselves and their families. But under the racist policies of the previous administration, protections were terminated for the six nations in 2018, leading to the class action litigation. Ramos vs. Nielsen continued into the Biden administration, at which point parties then went into talks. But negotiations “officially collapsed” this week, legal advocates said.
The coalition said it was “deeply disappointed in the administration’s failure to come to an agreement,” and called on Department of Homeland Security Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas to take “immediate action” to protect beneficiaries from El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Nepal, as it did with Haiti and Sudan, in 2021 and 2022.
In response to the breakdown of talks, the National TPS Alliance said it was holding vigils in several cities across the nation, including at least one battleground state in the 2022 elections. President Biden, as a candidate, described the previous president’s attacks on the TPS as “politically motivated” and a “recipe for disaster.” But advocates worry that the administration’s inaction today will not only hurt many families, but also dispirit Latino and immigrant voters right before the election.
“I think we felt double betrayed because we thought … we had an ally [in the White House], and would have used his power to decide TPS holders to stay in this country after 20 years,” Nevadan Francis Garcia said in Spanish-language remarks reported by The Nevada Independent. “But he chose not to.”
Opponents of extending this relief have said that temporary protections are just that, temporary. But the reality is that it is unsafe for many to be returned. And while the U.S. House has passed legislation to permanently protect TPS holders, there’s been no action in the U.S. Senate. “Decades of gridlock on immigration reform have forced long-time residents to live according to temporary solutions,” TPS-DED AAC campaign coordinator Lora Adams said. Congress should do its job, and the Biden administration has the ability to provide immediate relief in the meantime.
“It is not only the administration’s responsibility to maintain protection for all immigrants who can not safely return home, but it is Congress’s responsibility to end the uncertainty that forces thousands of families to hinge their futures on a court decision,” Adams said.
Today on The Brief, we speak with Way To Win’s co-founder and vice president, Jenifer Fernandez Ancona. Ancona comes in to discuss how grassroots progressive groups are spending money in the hopes of getting as many voters as possible out for the midterm elections. She also talks about which campaign advertisements are effective and which are not. One thing is for sure, though: We are living in historic times, and what that means for these midterms cannot be easily predicted—so Get Out The Vote!
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