South Florida

Dozens in South Florida Rally to Stop Haitian Deportation

On Haitian Flag Day, dozens rallied to bring awareness to the thousands of Haitians who are facing deportation

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Community leaders and local officials are calling on the Biden Administration to expand temporary protected status for Haitian immigrants.

At a local rally Tuesday, Louce Janvier spoke in Kreyol, calling on the federal government to stop deporting her Haitian people and to expand temporary protected status for Haitian immigrants.

Janvier currently has temporary protected status, or TPS, along with more than 55,000 other Haitians living in the U.S.

Demonstrators rallied outside an ICE Facility off Powerline Road calling on the Biden Administration redesignate TPS to Haitians who have immigrated to South Florida,

“Decision-makers in the United States, we cannot accept that our sisters and brothers are in a cruel and inhumane fashion being sent back to Haiti," said Paul, who is a leader with the Family Action Network Movement organization.

After the 2010 Earthquake in Haiti, Haitians who left the country to come to the United States were given TPS and could stay.

But after 2011, Haitians were being sent back to Haiti. Redesignating TPS would expand the requirement for Haitians who immigrated after the earthquake, allowing them to stay.   

North Lauderdale Commissioner Samson Borgelin, who was born and raised in Haiti, said sending Haitians back to Haiti will do more harm than good as the island nation deals with political unrest and poverty.

“Anyone can understand what’s happening, what if you send someone back to Haiti right now, it’s the devastation there... There’s no way someone can’t survive there," Borgelin said.

Now demonstrators are asking for the federal government to expand the TPS so local Haitian immigrants can continue to call South Florida home.

Back in March, Sen. Marco Rubio sent a letter to the Foreign Affairs committee asking them to look into expanding TPS for Haitians.

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