NORTH MIAMI, Fla. — Vulnerable migrants in need often turn to Sant La Haitian Neighborhood Center in North Miami for help.
On Monday, Leonie M. Hermantin, an advocate at the center, met with a woman affected by the expiration of the Temporary Protected Status.
“We are really urging people to, yes, have faith, but also to be prepared,” Hermantin said.
Hermantin said parents of U.S.-born minor children need to plan for the possibility of a family separation with the change of immigration status.
“We ask parents to sign, to prepare a temporary affidavit that provides guardianship that lets someone be a temporary guardian ... to make medical decisions and to allow children to travel,” Hermantin said.
Hermantin, who is fluent in Haitian Creole, translated for a woman who told Local 10 News that she and her mother were both victims of violence in Haiti before they fled to the U.S.
“I love my country, but this current situation does not make it safe for me to return to my country,” the woman said, according to Hermantin. “I don’t have asylum yet, I just submitted the application, so today feels like I am losing everything.”
Last year, the Department of Homeland Security determined that “the environmental situation in Haiti has improved enough that it is safe for Haitian citizens to return home.” Hermantin said Haiti isn’t safe.
“Gang violence has metastasized from Port-au-Prince to other parts of the country — making it unsafe for folks to return,” Hermantin said.
Earlier this year, a federal district court judge issued an order temporarily blocking the termination, but the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on June 25 cleared the path for DHS to end TPS.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services issued a court-order extension for Employment Authorization Documents that expired on Monday.
DHS also ended the Haitian Family Reunification Parole Program, which allowed eligible U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents to apply to help family members in Haiti before visas were available.“Girls were raped, burned, their homes were burned, taken over,” Hermantin said about some of the migrants who benefited from the program. “They have no home to return to. They have nothing to return to.” Hermantin said the neighborhood’s West Dixie Highway area is usually full of pedestrians, but it was “eerily” quiet on Monday. “It’s a really tough reality to face,” Hermantin said. “Some are still waiting for a last-minute reprieve. They are still waiting for hopefully an extension ... people were praying really hard at church yesterday.” While some are making plans to return to Haiti or move to countries like Brazil, where they have family, Hermantin said some have decided to stay. “People are definitely going underground,” Hermantin said. She said she is worried about the implications of “this traumatic experience” on child safety, the dignity of the elderly, food security, mental health, and labor shortages.
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