MIGRATION: Haitians in U.S. See Chance for Better Life

  • by Marguerite A. Suozzi (new york)
  • Inter Press Service

More than a decade ago, Marie Elisemonde left Haiti, fleeing threats of rape and murder by thugs, or zengledo in Creole, who could only be appeased with money. She paid 700 dollars for her seat on a boat to the United States, without any guarantees of a safe arrival or entry.

Elisemonde entered the United States illegally in 1997 and has been residing here without proper documentation and working in factories where she was paid under the table ever since.

Last weekend, she was the first person on line at a legal clinic in New York, which helped her send an application for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) off to citizen and immigration services.

'I feel like the United States has given me a gift, and I'm very grateful,' Elisemonde told IPS through a translator, speaking about her new opportunity to live and work in the U.S. She said she is optimistic about her potential status change.

On Jan. 15, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced a measure granting Haitian nationals in the United States as of Jan. 12 — the day of the devastating earthquake - eligibility to apply for TPS, 'Providing a temporary refuge for Haitian nationals who are currently in the United States and whose personal safety would be endangered by returning to Haiti.'

TPS would allow Haitians to reside and work legally in the United States for a period of 18 months as of Jan. 21. There is a 180-day application period, which expires Jul. 20, and the 18-month TPS period expires on Jul. 22, 2011, after which Haitians will be able to reapply for protected status.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officials expected 100,000 to 200,000 people to apply.

Some groups, such as the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI), are lobbying to extend the TPS period for up to five years.

As such, communities around the United States are working to alert Haitian nationals of this new eligibility, and to work with them to fill out paperwork and provide legal council.

'The first step of allowing Haitians to legalise their status, to come out of the shadows, have more earning power is I think one of the most significant parts of trying to rebuild Haiti,' New York State Assemblyman Phil Ramos told IPS at the Long Island Portuguese American Centre in Brentwood, New York, where he had organised a one-day, free legal clinic for undocumented Haitians in his community.

'President [Barack] Obama granted Temporary Protected Status to the Haitians but that message really wasn't getting out to the Haitians in our community,' where there is a significant population of both documented and undocumented Haitians, Ramos told IPS.

'I started to go to all the different Haitian churches here and announce that this was now available to them,' he said.

'If you're Haitian, you were here before Jan. 12, 2010, you are eligible to apply, even if you have an order of removal or deportation from the immigration court,' Eric Horn, an immigration attorney based in Brentwood, New York, told IPS.

'The one time where I would be hesitant, and say before applying speak to an immigration attorney, is when you have a criminal or multiple criminal convictions,' he said.

According to Marieline Lubin, a translator volunteering at the event, all of the Haitians applying for TPS at the Long Island clinic Saturday were residing in the United States without proper documentation. One man had been here since 2000, and was seeking political asylum. Another man's tourist visa had expired, and he was unable to renew it.

Haitians who enter the United States after Jan. 12 are not eligible for TPS, however.

'They want to discourage people from just deluging Miami by boat and everyone just fleeing to come here, because if you let it be that if you could come here now, then everyone and their cousin would come here,' Horn told IPS. 'And I guess they are trying to allow those that are here to live here and function here, have a job et cetera, but it is on some level crowd control.'

Assemblyman Ramos is an advocate for immigration reform between the United States and Haiti in response to the devastating earthquake, and the potential influx of Haitian migrants fleeing the wreckage.

'This is a country that's about to explode, people are going to get on boats. But if we do it in an orderly manner, we can let off that steam slowly in a way that doesn't cause us a problem in the United States, and serves the needs of the people suffering,' Ramos told IPS.

'Perhaps creating another category of work visas, extending the limits, since we have needs for that labour here, and at the same time, it would serve as a pressure valve, like on a pressure cooker,' he said.

Ramos said there would be a follow up clinic on Feb. 28 for those who were unable to attend or who need additional assistance.

© Inter Press Service (2010) — All Rights ReservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service