Massachusetts Haitians, Syrians face fallout as TPS expires
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. —
Concerns and fears are ripping through the Massachusetts Haitian and Syrian communities as temporary protected status for people from both countries has expired.
Gov. Maura Healey said ending TPS will have a big impact on the state’s healthcare system and affect thousands of workers.
NewsCenter 5 spoke with a nurse from Haiti who learned his TPS is expiring.
He now cannot legally work here and said it would be dangerous for him to go back to Haiti.
“Taking care of our seniors, it’s something, like, I enjoy doing, but now we realize we don’t have the work permit,” he said.
He came to the United States after Haiti’s devastating earthquake in 2010 and got TPS in 2011.
“We work, and we pay taxes,” he said. “We live in the United States that so many call ‘the American dream.’ It’s a fight to get the American dream.”
A Supreme Court ruling cleared the way for the Trump administration to end TPS for Haiti and Syria.
It affects 45,000 Haitians in Massachusetts.
Immigration enforcement is expected to ramp up.
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security released the following statement:
“Temporary Protected Status is exactly that – temporary. For too long, TPS has been allowed to function as a de facto amnesty program despite Congress never intending it to be permanent.”
Immigrant advocates said TPS holders are worried about how to pay the bills.
The United Way of Massachusetts Bay has activated its United Response Fund to help, saying in part:
“Thousands of families across Massachusetts will face urgent needs related to housing, food, health care, childcare, and financial stability as work authorizations are revoked.”