Federal judge blocks Trump plan to end protections for Haitians

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A federal judge in Washington blocked the Trump administration from ending Temporary Protected Status protections for Haitians on Monday, granting a pause while a lawsuit challenging the termination proceeds. The ruling, issued by U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes, was aimed at halting a decision that was set to take effect Tuesday and that would have left roughly 350,000 Haitians without the ability to remain in the United States under TPS.

Reyes granted the request to pause the termination and wrote in an 83-page opinion that the termination “shall be null, void, and of no legal effect.” The judge, appointed by President Joe Biden, said the plaintiffs challenging the termination were likely to prevail on the merits of their case while the litigation continues.

In her decision, Reyes said it was “substantially likely” that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem preordained her termination decision because of “hostility to nonwhite immigrants.” Reyes also said Noem did not have “unbounded discretion” and was required to consult with other agencies on conditions in Haiti before ending protections.

The opinion cited Noem’s own statements from just three days after she announced the end to Haitian protections. Those comments included a call for a travel ban from Haiti and “every damn country that has been flooding our nation with killers, leeches, and entitlement junkies.” The judge found that framing relevant to what the court viewed as the process that led to the TPS termination.

While the ruling granted temporary relief, the next legal steps were not immediately clear. A U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson, Tricia McLaughlin, denounced the decision, calling it “lawless activism.” McLaughlin said Haiti’s TPS was granted after an earthquake more than 15 years ago and that it “was never intended to be a de facto amnesty program,” arguing that prior administrations had used it in that way for decades.

Under Temporary Protected Status rules, TPS can be granted when the Homeland Security secretary determines that conditions in a country of origin are unsafe for return due to a natural disaster, political instability or other dangers. The protections allow TPS holders to live and work in the U.S., but they do not provide a path to citizenship. Haiti’s TPS was initially activated in 2010 after the earthquake and has been extended multiple times, as the country has continued to face gang violence and displacement.

Attorneys for Haitian TPS holders argued in court filings that if the termination went forward, people “will almost certainly die,” writing that some would be killed, others would die from disease, and others would “likely starve to death.” They said the government’s decision was motivated by racial animus and that Noem failed to consider whether there was an ongoing armed conflict that would pose a “serious threat” to personal safety, as required by law.

In a separate court filing in December, DHS attorneys said the plaintiffs’ racial-animus claims were based on statements “taken out of context, often from other speakers and from years ago,” and without direct links to the secretary’s determinations. They said Noem provided “reasoned, facially sufficient explanations” for her decisions. The DHS notice announcing the termination in November described Haiti as having positive developments, including authorization of a new multinational force to combat gangs, and said Noem had determined that allowing Haitians to remain in the U.S. was against the national interest.

In Springfield, Ohio, Haitian Support Center operations director Rose-Thamar Joseph said Monday’s ruling offered immediate relief. “We can breathe for a little bit,” Joseph said. Other community leaders said the decision did not end their safety concerns about returning to Haiti, and they described TPS as tied to the ability to work and support families.

Jerome Bazard, a member of the First Haitian Evangelical Church of Springfield, said it was still too dangerous for many people in his community to go back to Haiti. “They can’t go to Haiti because it’s not safe. Without the TPS, they can’t work. And if they can’t work, they can’t eat, they can’t pay bills. You’re killing the people,” he said. Community uncertainty has also intensified fears after bomb threats and reported concerns tied to immigration enforcement efforts elsewhere in the U.S., local leaders said.