The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says more than 200 Haitians have been deported in the last several weeks, as the Barrack Obama administration has resumed deportation of Haitians living illegally in the country.
DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson said the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, also “plans to significantly expand removal operations in the coming weeks”.
But Johnson said Haitian nationals currently covered by Temporary Protected Status (TPS) are unaffected by the resumption of deportation to the French-speaking Caribbean country.
“Specifically, those Haitian nationals who have been continuously residing in the United States since January 12, 2011 and currently hold TPS may remain in the United States and are not subject to removal,” he said in a statement.
“These beneficiaries also remain eligible for employment authorization.”
Johnson said TPS for Haitian nationals has been extended through July 22, 2017, adding, however, that “recently, we have seen an increase in the numbers of those apprehended on the southern border”.
He said he has instructed border security and immigration enforcement personnel “to take steps to keep pace with this increase”.
As a result, the DHS secretary said there are currently about 41,000 immigrants in US immigration detention facilities, including over 4, 400 Haitians. Typically, the number in immigration detention is about 31,000 to 34,000, he said.
“I have authorized ICE to acquire additional detention space so that those apprehended at the border and not eligible for humanitarian relief can be detained and sent home as soon as possible,” Johnson said. “We must enforce the immigration laws consistent with our priorities.
“Those who attempt to enter our country illegally must know that, consistent with our laws and our values, we must and we will send you back,” he affirmed.
Following the tragic earthquake that struck Haiti in January 2010, Johnson noted that ICE ceased deporting Haitians living illegally in the US.
But, in 2011, Johnson said the US resumed the removals of Haitians “on a limited basis, who had final orders of removal and had been convicted of a serious crime.”
On September 22 this year, Johnson announced that the US would resume removals of Haitian nationals “in accordance with our existing enforcement priorities.”
Earlier this month, Caribbean American congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke urged the Obama administration to immediately halt the deportation of undocumented Haitians, stating that “the majority of the people DHS intends to remove have not been accused of any crime.”
“These deportations will return thousands of Haitians to a country that continues to struggle with the devastation of Hurricane Matthew and the recent outbreak of cholera that was introduced by international aid workers responding to the 2010earthquake,” added the daughter of Jamaican immigrants, who represents the 9th Congressional District in Brooklyn, New York.
On November 2, Clarke, with 13 of her congressional colleagues, urged Johnson to suspend the removal of Haitian nationals who have not been convicted of a serious crime or otherwise present a threat to US national security.
Two major Haitian Diaspora groups in New York have launched an online petition requesting an immediate halt the deportation of undocumented Haitians in the wake of the massive destruction caused by Hurricane Matthew in October.
It is amazing how Trump said he will start with building a wall at the Mexican border and that he planned to send illegal Mexicans home but he hasn’t done so, he has changed his tune… Now instead of him doing what he said he was going to do that’s the reason the white’s voted for him, they want to start sending millions of Haitians home some who never committed a crime and have been in this country for years back to a country that is still experiencing devastation… The Mexicans that holds seats in congress will not allow their people to be moved or touch and they will fight Trump and Trump apparently is backing back from them… That’s why all countries that have illegals here in the US also needs to fight like the Mexicans and do not allow Trump to do immigrants of color wrong because the Mexicans are fighting back at him and now his stumbling back on what he said… I do not know what this world is going to be or end up with the two years this man in office.
Idiot, Trump is not sworn into office yet. He was not apart of that decision. Obama did and he has been deporting thousands since he has been in office.
Anoyomous I feel it for you.
I heard a rumor that those legal colleague’s of their’s voted overwhelmingly for trump, siting the fact that bill Clinton stole the relief money they were to get in there home country.
Suh dem tell people but if u ask dem in details how the Clintons stole their relief money they cannot tell u.
Ahh bwoy such foolishness
@anon slay say whatt???
1 Haitian tell me she n her ppls would never vote Hillaryi never even bother ask her reasons
Met, when are you going to cover the Clintoln Haiti story. You have not covered it at all. Huge corruption and theft from one of the poorest countries in the world and not worth a single story on here?
Google ?
Met, you really ago take clington side over the people of Haiti? nah man, me lose of a you.
Mi cool with that
:ngakak :ngakak
So you really think the Haitians made it all up? They stole from themselves? Wow.
Again.
You run a black Caribbean website.
A black Caribbean country that is a neighbour to Jamaica, has been robbed of a fortune given by well meaning people, while at it’s most vulnerable.
Your response to my asking when you will cover the story is sarcasm? Met, have you bothered to research it or are you too busy on facebook and twitter getting your ‘news’.
If it can happen to Haiti, it can happen to Jam. I guess you’re just not interested.
:kiss
Anon dem set yuh oba yah tideh :bingung
Why run a story about 200 Haitians as if you are concerned for their plight? Cherry picking stories to make your point but you ignore the big story as it makes Hillary look bad and you can’t be bothered to do the research, or worse, you know the story but are acting as if it’s all made up.
One more :kiss
Met, I love you. Like how yuh fix the haters them, woiii!!!!!
A lot of legal haitians voted for Trump!!!!! So dem a fi just gwaaan bill and tek wa dem a get. Hispanics as well! They all voted for Donald Trump even after all that he has said. Im from an immigrant family tho im a citizen if it wernt for them I wouldnt be. Some of us a black ppl fooling our selves thinking we have privileges like the white so we vote accordingly. Smh!
Met I read your blog alot and I enjoy. However lately Since the passing of Fildel Castro. I feel that you are showing editorial Bias. You only post the good Castro has done. What abt alllllll the bad he has done to his own cuba. People? His own daughter ran from cuban to live in america becuz she has so much issues withthe Gov.
Again not bashing u just want you to exercise less bias to open discussion to others who have knwlege to share just the same.
by now the entire world knows that hillary is crooked, but I’m speculating that everybody who is bashing her notably drumpf’s butler ‘Dat Mi Seh’ & drumpf’s shoe-shine ‘anonymous’ seems to think that drumpf is any less crooked, just wait, its coming, see the air condition and furnace magnate CARRIER from INDIANA locking up shop and moving to Mexico taking around 14,000(yes 14,000) jobs with it, PENCE(R-INDIANA), chump’s sidekick wispered in their ears to move to Mexico as a cost efficient initiative and in return the CHUMP/PENCE administration will slash the corporate tax fron 35% to 15% for CARRIER free up billions of dollars in loot that is hidden in offshore tax havens, they know about theese monies thanks to mr. Obama & the implementation of FATCA, in return CARRIER would move some of those monies back to the US and PRETEND as if they’re actually investing in the US economy to give chump/pense credit,but what the plan is, is for CARRIER to use that same money to buy back its own stocks and thus inflate the value of their stocks making them richer, AT THE DUNSE AND ILLITERATE PEOPLE OF INDIANA(who vote for chump/pence) EXPENSE, Ms MET, just remember this one because its coming, give it to around next year this time. :travel
Amen so let it be Ram Jam preach!! Not even out my right minD would I be a Trump supporter but all I’ve been saying is Hillary is woefully unfit n as u pointed out the whole world KNOW shes crooked.
I seriously would support the unthinkable n tell ppl to vote for guntoting hillbilly airheaD Sarah Palin over Hillary I swear such is my disgust n Disdain for that rotten evil to the core Clinton lady.Trump has all the trappings of a next Hitler in the making though smh.