* Warning: This is an unofficial, introductory copy of the bill.
The official copy considered by the City Council is the first reader copy.
Introductory*
City of Baltimore
Council Bill R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: Councilmember Burnett
A Resolution Entitled
A Council Resolution concerning
title
Request for Federal Action - Extend Temporary Protected Status for Haitians
For the purpose of urging the President and the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security to protect thousands of Haitians living in Maryland and nationwide through the extension of Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status designation beyond January 22, 2018.
body
Recitals
Whereas, The 2010 Haiti earthquake, reaching 7.0 magnitude, shook the country to its core, leading to a death toll of between 220,000 and 316,000. Over 1.5 million people were initially and internally displaced.
Whereas, As a response to the earthquake’s devastation, President Obama and the Department of Homeland Security granted 58,000 Haitian nationals who were in the United States as of January 12, 2010 Temporary Protected Status (TPS), granting them temporary residence and refuge in the United States.
Whereas, Currently nearly 240,000 Haitian earthquake victims remain displaced in camps and settlements. The cholera epidemic, spread by UN peacekeepers that responded to the earthquake, has since killed at least 10,000 and infected over 800,000 Haitians. Even more, October 2016’s Hurricane Matthew took the lives of over 1,000 people, left hundreds of thousands without safe water or food, and further crippled the nation’s infrastructure and agriculture.
Whereas, Haiti’s TPS has been continually renewed since its advent in 2010. Most recently, on May 22, 2017, the Department of Homeland Security extended Haiti’s TPS designation for only six months, warning recipients to be prepared to return to Haiti. The status is now scheduled to terminate on January 22, 2018.
Whereas, When meeting with Haitian-American leaders at the Little Haiti Cultural Center in Miami in September 2016, then-candidate Trump remarked, “The Haitian people deserve better, so ¼ I will give them better. Today we begin a new chapter, together we will build a relationship based on mutual respect and friendship and love, and ¼ we will really do something very special with our commonly shared values, because we have lots of commonly shared values, maybe full shared values.¼ and whether you vote for me or don’t vote me, I really want to be your greatest champion, and I will be your champion whether you vote for me or not¼. we are going to do things for you folks that you have really deserved for a long time”.
Whereas, Haiti’s government - overwhelmed by the catastrophic effects of the 2010 earthquake, a cholera epidemic, Hurricane Matthew, and food insecurity - is struggling to cope and to deliver even the most basic life-sustaining services.
Whereas, Before May 22, prior Haiti TPS extensions had always been for 18-month periods, based on an accurate assessment of Haitian conditions.
Whereas, The 58,000 Haitians with TPS have been in the U.S. since at least January 12, 2011, and have ties to community, family, and even children that were born in the U.S.
Whereas, The 58,000 Haitians who are protected under TPS regularly send remittances which sustain about 320,000 to 500,000 relatives in Haiti, totaling $1.3 billion. This aid serves as Haiti’s primary source of foreign assistance, and therefore Haitians who are protected by TPS are actively and meaningfully involved in Haitian disaster relief.
Whereas, Haiti’s history of resilience serves as a reminder of how a people can persevere against all odds. The first independent nation in Latin America and the first nation to renounce slavery, Haiti has a longstanding history of revolution and rebellion, speaking to the spirit of the Haitian people despite the momentous adversity that they have faced.
Whereas, Those from El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Syria, and Yemen residing in the U.S. also heavily benefit from TPS protection, and extensions are also crucially needed for individuals from these countries.
Now, therefore, be it resolved by the City Council of Baltimore, that the Council urges the President and the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security to protect thousands of Haitians living in Maryland and nationwide through the extension of Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status designation beyond January 22, 2018.
And be it further resolved, That a copy of this Resolution be sent to the Mayor, the President, the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security, the Honorable members of the Maryland Delegation to the 115th Congress, and the Mayor’s Legislative Liaison to the City Council.