On Friday, immigration advocates will convene a legislative and media briefing to discuss the importance of extending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for individuals from disaster-affected countries living in the United States. The Trump administration is considering ending such protections for individuals from Central America, following its announcement that it will likely end TPS status for Haitians next January. Over 300 beneficiaries of TPS will also conduct lobby visits to legislative staff on the impact and contributions of TPS, and will discuss the creation of a national advocacy coalition to save TPS and advocate for an extension of its benefits.
Temporary Protected Status offers undocumented migrants a stay of deportation and work authorization in the face of circumstances in their home countries that would make it difficult for the country to re-absorb them. As of 2015, some 200,000 Salvadorans and 57,000 Hondurans (along with about 50,000 Haitians and a small number of migrants from other countries) benefit from TPS.
Hundreds of thousands of TPS recipients have been legally living and working in the United States for years. Many of them have children who are U.S. citizens, contribute to the U.S. labor market and economy, and send much-needed economic support back to their countries of origin.
Ending TPS for Haiti, El Salvador, and Honduras would be expensive. According to a new report by Dr. Cecilia Mejivar, who will speak at Friday’s event, eliminating TPS could lead to a $45 billion reduction in GDP in the United States, a $6.9 billion loss in government revenue, and nearly $1 billion in added employer costs.
WHAT: Legislative Briefing and Press Conference
WHERE: 122 Cannon House Office Building, Washington DC
WHEN: Friday, June 23, 2017 at 10:00 a.m.
WHO:
- Dr. Cecilia Menjivar, Co-Director, Center for Migration Research, University of Kansas
- Geoff Thale, Program Director, Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA)
- Adriana Beltrán, Senior Associate, Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA)
- Abel Nuñez, Executive Director, Central American Resource Center-DC (CARECEN-DC)
- Martha Arevalo, Executive Director, Central American Resource Center-LA (CARECEN-LA)
- Pablo Alvarado, National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON)
To RSVP to the event, please click here.
