The Tahirih Justice Center strongly condemns the administration’s racist and brutal mistreatment of Haitian refugees at the U.S. southern border
Tahirih aligns with the statements and calls to action issued by activists and organizations such as the Haitian Bridge Alliance, UndocuBlack Network, Black Alliance for Just Immigration, and the Movement for Black Lives.
A letter issued by those groups and endorsed by more than 200 others calls for an end to the war on Black immigrants and states:
“Right now, thousands of Haitians are stranded in treacherous conditions in Mexican border towns. There, Haitian migrants are facing open violence from CBP that is reminiscent of the horrific practices endured by their enslaved ancestors centuries ago–photos of officers using reins for horses on migrants simply trying to purchase water and food as they wait for the chance to seek protection. Under international law, Haitians have the right to seek asylum in the U.S.; instead, they have faced insurmountable barriers to entry due to Title 42. More than two thousand Haitians already in the country have been deported under the Biden Administration, including pregnant women and toddlers. Haitians are being deported back to the same dire conditions that have been internationally categorized as a humanitarian crisis, spurring a new designation of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) by the Biden Administration a mere month ago. TPS for Haiti protects Haitians living in the U.S. from deportation; it is wholly illogical and unequivocally cruel to now expel and deport thousands of Haitians arriving at the border to those very same conditions.”
The unnecessary and disproportionate violence perpetrated upon Haitians by border officials must stop immediately. Haitians approaching the U.S. must be afforded the opportunity to apply for asylum in accordance with international and domestic law, like all other individuals. In addition, the administration’s targeting of Haitian nationals for deportation over the last several months, as has happened for many years, is racist and cannot be tolerated.
Archi Pyati, CEO, is available for comment on this topic. Please contact Karla Flores at [email protected] to arrange an interview.
