The San Diego, CA-based Haitian Bridge Alliance and the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) on Wednesday strongly condemned the Trump administration’s termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for about 600,000 Venezuelans residing in the United States.
“This action, announced by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, not only jeopardizes the safety and well-being of countless individuals but also contradicts America’s global commitment to human rights and humanitarian principles,” Haitian Bridge Alliance Executive Director Guerline Josef told Caribbean Life.
She said that TPS, a humanitarian immigration program established under the US Immigration Act of 1990 (INA § 244), grants temporary legal status to nationals of designated countries experiencing ongoing armed conflict, environmental disasters, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions that make safe return impossible.
“TPS recipients are allowed to live and work legally in the United States for the duration of the designation,” Josef said. “Here, the revocation of TPS for Venezuelans disregards the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Venezuela, where political instability, economic collapse, and widespread human rights abuses have forced millions to flee their homeland.”
In pointing to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), she said more than 7.7 million Venezuelans have left the country in search of protection and a better life, “making it one of the largest displacement crises in the world.”
Josef said the majority—over 6.5 million people—have been hosted in Latin American and Caribbean countries.
“Within Venezuela, the situation remains dire,” she said, stating that an estimated 7.6 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance, “struggling to access adequate healthcare, nutrition, and essential services.
“The termination of TPS ignores these harsh realities, effectively condemning thousands to return to life-threatening conditions,” Josef added. “This decision is emblematic of the administration’s broader xenophobic agenda, which seeks to marginalize immigrant communities and dismantle systems of protection for the most vulnerable.
“It perpetuates a narrative that devalues the lives of those seeking safety and undermines the rich diversity that strengthens our nation,” she continued. “Such actions serve only to sow division and perpetuate systemic injustices against marginalized populations.”
Josef said the Haitian Bridge Alliance “stands in solidarity with the Venezuelan community and all TPS holders who are being targeted by policies that undermine our nation’s laws, values of compassion and refuge.
“We call on Congress to take immediate action to provide permanent protection for TPS holders and ensure that no family is forced to return to dangerous conditions,” she said. “In the interim, we call on Congress to use its power to force the administration to rescind its position.”
Murad Awawdeh, NYIC’s president and chief executive officer, warned that Trump’s revocation of the recent extension of TPS for Venezuela “will make over a half million immigrants at risk for deportation.
“The hypocrisy of the Trump administration’s immigration policy is on full display with this decision, as they tell people to immigrate legally but then remove legal status,” Awawdeh, whose umbrella organization represents over 200 immigrant and refugee rights groups throughout New York, also told Caribbean Life.
He noted that, in New York, TPS has allowed Caribbean and other immigrant neighbors to legally work and contribute to the economy.
Awawdeh said that since New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams have been strong supporters of TPS for Venezuela, “we are urging them to show their commitment to this program as a means for recent arrivals to safely work and contribute.”
Awawdeh also called on US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and US House of Representatives’ Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries – both New York representatives – “to rally their colleagues in Congress to support TPS for Venezuela.
“Our elected officials in New York must stand up to protect all New Yorkers, and to ensure the continued health and stability of our economy,” he urged.
Awawdeh noted that the extension of TPS for Venezuelans was slated to run from April 3, 2025 to Oct. 2, 2026, and would have benefited an estimated 600,000 people.
He said the extension only applied to eligible individuals who have resided in the United States on or before July 31, 2023.
“As of today’s decision, recipients who began their status in 2021 will maintain their protections through September, and those who began in 2023 will maintain their protections until at least April,” Awawdeh said.
