January 28, 2026
Dear Friend,
This is an emergency. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced that next Tuesday, February 2, Temporary Protected Status will be terminated for Haitians. If DHS succeeds, 350,000 of our neighbors will immediately lose their work eligibility and will face all the dangers of the deportation machine in the US and gang violence in Haiti.
But WE can stop the termination. “We” includes several ongoing lawsuits and initiatives by activists, employers and religious and political leaders. We need YOU to join us and tip the balance towards justice.
If you have only 2 minutes:
Call the Congressional House switchboard, (202) 224-3121. Say your zip code and ask to be connected to your Representative. When you are connected, say “My name is _______, I live in (city/state/zip code). I am calling to urge Representative _____ to co-sponsor House Resolution 965, to extend Temporary Protected Status for Haitians. Please contact Representative Ayanna Pressley’s office to become a co-sponsor. Thank you for your consideration.”
If you have 10 minutes this week:
The broader context includes the lawsuit that IJDH and allies are pursuing in DC, Miot v. Trump, in which we expect an injunction will issue before Tuesday blocking the termination. This result is not guaranteed, but every judge, Republican or Democrat, who has ruled on DHS efforts to terminate Haitian TPS since 2018 has found it illegal.
DHS will certainly appeal any injunction, but how it appeals will make all the difference. If the appeals go through the normal course, to the Court of Appeals, the Department will likely lose there too and would not be able to have the Supreme Court review that loss until after the next Presidential election. But if DHS appeals directly to the Supreme Court through the emergency docket, it could receive a stay of the injunction in days or weeks, leading to an immediate and catastrophic termination of TPS.
Continuing Haitian TPS can be done through many paths, including DHS revoking the termination, not appealing an injunction or appealing it to an appeals court, or by Rep. Pressley’s Congressional extension of TPS.
Many actors have stepped up to apply pressure on the administration to not cancel TPS through one of these paths. Last week Rep. Pressley and Senator Markey held a Congressional Field Hearing on TPS, that included eloquent statements from healthcare providers who would lose 15% of their nurses, religious leaders seeing empty pews from parishioners too scared to come pray, and unions ready to fight for their members (the video of the hearing is here. The written version of my remarks, on conditions in Haiti that prevent safe return, are here). Business leaders have spoken out on the impending elder care disaster from cancellation. Editorials from the Miami Herald, Washington Post, Dayton Daily News and other papers have denounced TPS cancellation for Haitians.
All of this takes place in a rapid shift of public opinion against the administration’s immigration policies. In this context, Congressional action can make a decisive difference. The Discharge Petition faces a high hurdle to actual enactment, but having over 100 co-sponsors, although not enough to enact the law, will demonstrate significant strength. Republicans who may be reluctant, in these polarized times, to sign a discharge petition can make an impact by calling the White House and urging TPS extension by any of the paths.
Reading that probably took you 3 minutes, so in the 7 minutes you have left from the 10: please send this page to at least 20 friends, family and collaborators, especially those who have a Republican Representative or Senator.
If you have 5-10 hours this week:
IJDH has discovered over the years that repeated calls to Members of Congress’ offices, even if not from constituents, can generate many dozens of signatures. We are looking for 10-20 volunteers who can commit to making several calls over the next week, to make sure the Discharge Petition has over 100 cosponsors (it has 29 now). IJDH Immigration Policy Coordinator Steve Forester, who is so good at this that larger organizations ask him to show them how to do it, will provide a brief training. Boston-based Haitian-American leader Martin Mathelier has agreed to lead the effort and give you the support you need to excel. Please email info@ijdh.org immediately if you are interested and available.
Other things you can do:
- If you are an employee or a customer of an employer where Haitian TPS holders work, ask the employer to contact the White House or their Members of Congress to urge the continuation of TPS;
- Organize in your church, union, school, or community group to write or call Congress, or even better to have a meeting at the District office. IJDH would be happy to provide talking points;
- Thank Members of Congress, or anyone else, who steps up on this. Gratitude will help them become persistent supporters of just treatment for Haitians in the US; and
- Let us know if you need any information to support your advocacy!
I know that many of us in the IJDH community are feeling sad and overwhelmed these days. So I particularly appreciate you taking the time from a busy day to read our message. I am highly confident that you, like I, will find fighting back uplifting.
Gratefully,
Brian Concannon
Executive Director, IJDH
