WASHINGTON, D.C. – FWD.us President Todd Schulte issued the following statement after the Trump administration’s move to terminate Temporary Protected Status for Haiti, Syria, Yemen, following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision clearing the way:

“This is an astonishing and needless human tragedy for people in the Haitian, Syrian, and Yemeni TPS community, who now face losing their ability to work and being torn from their families and homes. Our deepest sympathies go out to hundreds of thousands of families whose lives are being thrown into chaos and their well-being endangered. 

“Temporary Protected Status has not only been a life-saving benefit to hundreds of thousands of people who have fled incredible violence and hardship, but has also been an amazing benefit to our entire country. TPS holders have survived, by definition, an incredible hardship—and they have thrived here in the U.S., helping to build a stronger country. The claim that it is safe to return people to Haiti, Syria or Yemen confounds basic common sense. This move that will force hundreds of thousands of people out of their jobs and expose them to deportation is a clear, stark, unnecessary, tragic, and the wrong step for our entire country. 

“The President and this administration are ultimately responsible for what is to come, but so are many in Congress who do not take any and all actions to pass legislation to provide protections and a pathway to citizenship, including through the American Dream and Promise Act.

“We should be clear-eyed at the harm that is coming and dedicate ourselves to doing all we can in the days and weeks ahead. And in the spirit of men anpil, chay pa lou, be clear about what is required of all of us.”

For more information about the contributions of TPS holders to the U.S. and the harms of these terminations and more to come, visit fwd.us/tps.