A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from ending legal protections for more than 350,000 Haitians living in the United States, preventing their potential deportation to a country plagued by gang violence.
U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes of Washington, D.C., halted the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) plan to terminate Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which had been scheduled to take effect this Wednesday. The move comes amid escalating violence in Haiti, which has displaced over 1.4 million people.
Judge Reyes, appointed by former President Joe Biden, ruled in a class-action lawsuit brought by Haitians who argued that ending their legal status would expose them to deportation. In her decision, Reyes noted that DHS Secretary Kristi Noem likely violated procedural requirements and the Fifth Amendment’s guarantee of equal protection.
“Plaintiffs charge that Secretary Noem preordained her termination decision and did so because of hostility to nonwhite immigrants. This seems substantially likely,” Reyes wrote.
The law firm representing the plaintiffs, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, welcomed the ruling, emphasizing the dangers Haitians would face if forced to return. “This ensures they can remain in the U.S., continue contributing to their communities, and support their families,” the firm said.
TPS allows individuals from countries affected by disasters or conflict to live and work legally in the U.S. temporarily. DHS had sought to end TPS for Haiti as part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to limit immigration, arguing that the program was never intended as a permanent solution.
Haitians were first granted TPS in 2010 following a devastating 7.0-magnitude earthquake. The status has been repeatedly extended, most recently by the Biden administration in July 2024 for 18 months, citing ongoing economic, political, and security crises in Haiti.
Following the judge’s ruling, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the department intends to appeal, maintaining that TPS is temporary.
The decision highlights ongoing tensions over immigration policy in the U.S. and underscores the severe humanitarian situation in Haiti, where more than six million people—over half the population—require assistance, including 3.3 million children, according to UNICEF.
