Settled immigrants who could face deportation following the Trump administration’s termination of their protections want you to know their stories—and they’ll even come to you to share it. A number of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) recipients are criss-crossing the country in a 50-city, 12 week long “TPS Journey for Justice” bus tour, hoping to not just educate the public, to push federal leaders to act.
“Our kids are frightened,” Sandra Granados, a Salvadoran TPS recipient, said during a stop in New Orleans late last month. At nearly 200,000, Salvadorans are the largest protected group by far, and have thousands of U.S. citizen children who could get uprooted with their parents, or be left behind. “They are going to school with fears that we are being sent back to our countries and that when they come back from school, we won’t be there.”
TPS recipients are already vetted, and putting them onto a path to legalization should be a no-brainer, but the Republican-led Congress refuses to act. In the meantime, only the courts have taken a step to protect them, following a federal judge putting a temporary hold on the administration’s move to terminate TPS. But, the administration is sure to keep fighting this. So, these families continue to wait in limbo.
"I've made my whole life here, worked here, paid taxes and followed the rules,'' Honduran TPS recipient Mardoel Hernandez said during a stop in New Jersey earlier this week. Like thousands of other program beneficiaries, he’s a homeowner and is settled here. "We know that not all is lost,” he continued, “and that's why we are working hard to demand that Congress take action."
Hawaida Elarabi, originally from Sudan, was blunt about the daily fear in her life. “I find myself looking over my shoulder and imagining worst-case scenarios.” Not knowing if she would be deported, she even sold her restaurant, which she had owned since 2015. “I am depressed and hopeless much of the time,” she said. Is this the best we can do for people who have fled violence and instability? Listen to their stories, and sweep in leaders who will protect them.
Organizer Jose Palma said the caravan is celebrating the court’s decision. “The recipients are part of the communities across the country,” he said. “We need the community, and the communities need us. Last night’s decision is a message that we’re going in the right direction, and I hope that soon we can achieve permanent residency for all TPS holders." The “TPS Journey for Justice” is expected to continue with stops in New Jersey and New York this week. Click here for details.