Supporting the Haitian Community Against Racialized Immigration Terror
In June of 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Trump Administration could end temporary protected status (TPS) for the 330,000 Haitians who fled violence in their home country. Many of them are still navigating the long-term effects and trauma of the catastrophic earthquake that struck Haiti almost seventeen years ago. Legal protected status officially ended for Haitians on July 27, 2026. The official explanation from the Department of Homeland Security is that Haiti no longer meets the statutory requirements for TPS and that conditions in Haiti had vastly improved. Those of us born at night rather than last night know that is a fallacy. We also know what this policy shift is really about. It is about the Trump Administration propelling its immigration enforcement goals under the guise of supposed national interests.
This abrupt policy shift is on brand for an Administration that has targeted and demonized Black and Brown immigrants from the moment Donald Trump descended that golden escalator over a decade ago. This is weaponized bigotry cloaked in nationalism. Don’t believe it? Let us examine the evidence. During the 2024 election race, Trump promised to be more aggressive on immigration during his second term. He coined the term “shock-and-awe blitz” when referring to what he planned to do about migrants and spent copious amounts of time linking migration to crime (although the research generally shows that immigrants are not more likely to commit crimes than native-born citizens, and in many cases have lower crime rates). This was always about a certain kind of immigrant.
Trump did not come back into office targeting Eastern European immigrants who often flee the same kind of turmoil and economic conditions Haitians and other Black and Brown migrants flee from. Haitians happen to “fit the description” of the kind of immigrant that is unwelcome in this iteration of America. Juxtapose that with the Administration’s rolling out of the proverbial red carpet for White Afrikaners from South Africa. Since returning to the White House, the Administration has admitted 13,000 refugees. All but three were White South Africans. This is no coincidence. Under the guise of an overwhelmingly embellished “White genocide” taking place in South Africa, these folks have been allowed to come into the country while others have been aggressively rounded up and deported by a poorly trained militia.
To paraphrase the great James Baldwin, “This is the evidence, you want me to make an act of faith, risking myself, my life, my woman, my assistant, my children on some idealism, which you assure only exists in America, which I have never seen.” The evidence is clear, ending TPS for people from a certain region who happen to be Black while gleefully offering refuge and welcome packages for folks from across the Atlantic who happen to be White is both on brand and a glaring example of what the young folks would say “playing in people’s faces.” This policy shift is entirely rooted in white nationalist conspiracy theories that independent researchers and human rights organizations have debunked. Violent crimes affect all racial groups in South Africa and we know its history when it comes to the apartheid.
This entire political era had its genesis and cultivation in resentment that the demographics of the country were changing. The 44th President, love him or hate him, ushered in a new era of politics. A political process that seemed more inclusive and affirming of all voices rather than some. “Make America Great Again” was and will always be a large segment of America’s response to “hope and change.” Haitians are just the latest “other” that some see as a threat to their social dominance. It is remarkable that more than two years after the “They’re eating the dogs” presidential debate moment, we are still having conversations about who the Haitian community is.
Haitian TPS holders contribute approximately $5.9 billion annually to the U.S. economy. Haitians pay an estimated 1.5 billion each year in combined federal, state, and local taxes (805 million in federal/payroll taxes and $755 million in state/local taxes). Haitian TPS holders actively contribute to our workforce. Haitian immigrants’ own homes and businesses. They fill crucial staffing needs in agriculture (including thousands of farm workers), construction, transportation, hospitality, and service industries. They were among the essential workers we relied on during the COVID-19 Pandemic. This is a vibrant and proud community that makes this country a better place, despite the political rhetoric and vitriol of the moment. They deserve better than being shackled by the weight of bigotry and racial injustice with an ankle monitor to further the unnecessary penalty of shame and degradation. It is immigrants, like those of the Haitian community, that help make America great. If one group is targeted, we are all targeted.
Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, "We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.” If we allow any community to be demonized and misrepresented, we allow ourselves to be demonized and misrepresented. We stand with the Haitian community in solidarity and support.
by Charles M. Fox, M.A.P.P., Advisor & Member of the Board of Director
edited by BGT, Esq., Founder & CEO
