Speech #CREC-2017-11-06-pt1-PgH8513-3_t11

Our thoughts and prayers are with them tonight. Mr. Speaker, I rise to discuss the urgent need to preserve temporary protective status for immigrants fleeing famine, war, and violent conditions around the world, especially those countries from within the African diaspora who account for 10 percent of all TPS beneficiaries. Today, 440,000 individuals from 10 countries reside in the United States under temporary protective status because, as a nation, we have kept our commitment to being a beacon of hope and security for those in need. The TPS program grants immigrants the right to lawfully remain in the United States for 6 to 18 months. This longstanding practice has been honored for decades through Democratic and Republican administrations because, regardless of political affiliations as Americans, we have always stood for protecting the value of human life. Sadly, the Trump administration fails to grasp the lifesaving impact of this program. Just last month, the administration announced that it would terminate the TPS designation for Sudan, despite the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the region. In the coming days and weeks, Mr. Speaker, the Trump administration, unfortunately, will decide the fate of TPS holders from vulnerable countries including Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Haiti. Let me be clear: failure to renew TPS status would mean deportation for over 300,000 individuals who are working and living in the United States. We also know that this issue disproportionately impacts immigrants from countries within the African diaspora. Take Haiti for example. After a devastating earthquake and horrific hurricane, there is an active cholera outbreak and protracted food security crisis. Letting TPS expire for this country would send 50,000 people back to uncertain fates. An influx of people of this size would further destabilize a fragile recovery. That is why I joined my colleagues in sending a letter to the Department of Homeland Security calling for a full 18- month extension of Haiti's TPS designation. In El Salvador and Honduras, the return of over 250,000 people would strain government services and lead to job displacement in countries besieged by violence, narcotics trafficking, and weak institutions. Unfortunately, this week, Secretary Tillerson falsely claimed that conditions on the ground no longer warrant TPS designation for these countries. How he came up with that, I have no idea. This is really a shame and a disgrace. That is why members of the Congressional Black Caucus are here tonight fighting for temporary protected status because we cannot turn our backs on our brothers and sisters in their time of need. TPS holders have families, they own businesses, and they contribute to this country in countless ways. At a time when devastating hurricanes and flooding ravages our neighbors in the Caribbean, the last thing that our government should be doing is turning its back on TPS holders. It is not only TPS holders that we are fighting for. We are also now recognizing, understanding, knowing, and making public--as everyone knows--that millions of undocumented youth are living in fear of deportation because this President and Republicans in Congress can't muster the courage to do what is right. Our Nation has been and should continue to be a nation of immigrants. From TPS to DACA, deporting innocent young people who came to the United States to escape devastation and violence, or as a child, is not only wrong, it is really cruel, and it is heartless. So that is why we will continue to fight to protect undocumented youth as we work towards comprehensive immigration reform once and for all. Now we are going to say we are going to continue to fight to make sure temporary protective status is granted for the 300,000 immigrants. I want to thank Delegate Plaskett for helping us to, once again, raise our voices, educate the public, and stay woke.