Across the U.S. more than 350,000 Haitians are preparing to lose their temporary protected status, the government designation that prevents deportation to status holders because conditions in their homelands are so bad, it would be inhumane.
Protected status give recipients permission to live and work here lawfully so long as there is a designation. And unless a judge intervenes, the Feb. 3 deadline is looming for Haitians who hold TPS.
Should they lose it, the impact is expected to be large, especially Florida where some 100,000 Haitian Temporary Protected Status holders are in the workforce. Many work in health care, helping to make people feel better or to comfort those who are dying. They work in child care centers and in nursing homes. They also build homes — among other things.
"If it were to expire February 3, what that mean is people would lose jobs, people would not be able to drive, would not be able to put food on the table for their families. Children would not be able to go to school because of a fear of being deported," said Beatrice Jacquet-Castor, the president of the Haitian-American Community Coalition of Southwest Florida.
An immigrant from Haiti herself, Jacquet-Castor is a long-time advocate for Haitians especially since Haitians have been in the Trump administration’s crosshairs since his first presidency.
She’s calling on the greater Southwest Florida area to come together to show support to Haitians and gain a better understanding of what’s going on here and in Haiti.
"These are people that have fled political violence, have fled economic collapse and humanitarian disasters, so many of those are still unsafe," she said.
Haitians were first granted TPS after the devastating earthquake in 2010. The decade and a half have been turmoil in that country. Haiti is currently without a president. It’s been this way since the 2021 assassination of Jovenel Moise.
Gangs are largely in control and it is so dangerous US commercial flights to the capital city of Port-au-Prince remain banned by the FAA.
"There's no jobs, there's no houses, so there's really nothing for the people to go back to. So yet they're now facing terrifying possibility of detention, deportation or family separation, on top of their country not being ready to take them in," Jacquet-Castor said.
Sunday’s forum will be held at Hallelujah Community Church, 3208 Central Avenue in Fort Myers. It begins at 12:30.
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