Dozens of federal lawmakers are asking the Biden administration to extend temporary protections to thousands of Ethiopian immigrants already in the U.S., joining Black-led organizations that have escalated this call following Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designations for a number of nations in recent months.
“While we commend the administration’s swift work to safeguard Ukrainians and Afghans in the United States from war and humanitarian disaster, we are deeply concerned that TPS has not yet been designated for Ethiopia given the ongoing civil war,” over 40 House Democrats write. “The conditions in Ethiopia are urgent and egregious and we call upon the administration to do its part to protect Ethiopians in the United States from deportation by designating Ethiopia for TPS.”
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The Biden administration itself has already acknowledged many of these dangers. House Democrats point to a State Department bulletin last month urging people in the U.S. to reconsider any travel to Ethiopia, citing in part armed conflict, civil unrest, and kidnapping threats in border areas. “The next day, the State Department withdrew all non-emergency U.S. government employees and their family members from Ethiopia due to violence and severe supply shortages,” lawmakers led by Reps. Anthony Brown and Madeleine Dean said.
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“While Tigrayan forces and the Ethiopian government declared a humanitarian truce on March 24, 2022, only a tiny amount of food aid has been allowed to reach Tigray since then.” Nearly 1,000,000 people in the Tigray Region are facing famine conditions as the Horn of Africa is seeing the worst drought in decades, lawmakers said. Daily Kos’ Dave Neiwert reported last fall how Facebook has only enabled violent unrest.
Ukraine and Afghanistan have in recent months all been designated for TPS, the former in just a matter of days following Russia’s unprovoked invasion. But calls for Ethiopia’s designation have been ongoing for months despite the nation clearly meeting criteria for relief. “The people of Ethiopia living in the United States deserve the same protection from the dangers of returning to a war-torn country,” House lawmakers said.
Last fall, Reps. Joe Neguse and Ilhan Omar similarly urged relief for African nations including Ethiopia, writing that “many in the African immigrant community warrant such protection as well.” The Biden administration finally designated Cameroon for relief last month in a major victory. “The current conditions in Cameroon made it a textbook case for TPS designation,” the UndocuBlack Network said at the time. It also urged relief for nations including Mauritania and Ethiopia.
The Center for Migration Studies (CMS) estimated last year that about 30,000 Ethiopian immigrants could apply for relief should the federal government go by a 2021 eligibility date. “The largest concentration of Ethiopians potentially eligible for TPS—about 9,500 or nearly one-third—resides in the Virginia-Maryland-Washington, DC area.” Thousands more Ethiopian immigrants live in states including Nevada, Texas, and California.
Anuradha Mittal, executive director of the Oakland Institute, said last year that many Ethiopian immigrants have built lives and homes here, making them anything but temporary. “They have grown homes and businesses and are integral to the social fabric of their communities.” Mittal said the designation “protects recipients from deportation to untenable conditions, allowing them to work and live without fear. President Biden should listen to their pleas and designate Ethiopia for TPS.”
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