Temporary Protected Status for Haitians will be extended for another six months, Miami Congresswoman Frederica Wilson said Monday.
Wilson said her office received a call from the Department of Homeland Security informing them of the extension. The TPS will be reviewed again in six months, Wilson said.
"After careful review of the current conditions in Haiti and conversations with the Haitian government, I have decided to extend the designation of Haiti for Temporary Protected Status for a limited period of six-months," Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly said in a statement.
Wilson said she had waged a "Twitter storm" to help save the status for the approximately 58,000 Haitians believed to be living in the United States under TPS.
"While this news will give the tens of thousands of Haitians anxiously waiting to learn the program’s fate some measure of relief, this is in fact a cup half full situation," Wilson said in a statement. "The reality is that in six months Haiti will still be in no position to absorb and aid 58,000 unemployed people."
Groups rallied in South Florida Sunday asking the government and local leaders to push for an extension.
The special immigration rule for Haitians was slated to expire on July 22 but many said the 2010 earthquake in Haiti still affects the nation's stability.
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The Obama administration granted the temporary protective status after the massive earthquake devastated the island-nation, killing an estimated 220,000 and displacing 1.5 million.
Wilson said she's inviting DHS officials to join her on a trip to Haiti for a firsthand look at the conditions there.
"I have traveled to Haiti several times. For a person not known for being at a loss for words, I find it difficult to describe how gut-wrenchingly sad and difficult life is there. People are still living in tent cities, years after the earthquake," Wilson said.
