Federal trial begins Monday to protect more than 50,000 immigrants and their families from being forcibly separated by deportation

BROOKLYN – Today, a federal trial begins to protect more than 50,000 immigrants and their families from being forcibly separated by deportation. The case, Saget et al v. Trump, is the first trial to challenge the government’s unlawful termination of Temporary Protected Status and the Trump’s administration’s record of racial hostility against immigrants, particularly Haitians. Plaintiffs in the suit argue the Trump administration’s decision to terminate TPS status for Haitians was unlawful and unconstitutional, and motivated by President Trump’s public racial animus towards Haitians and other immigrants of color. Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09) released the following statement ahead of today’s trial:

“Last year, Donald J. Trump announced his intentions to the end Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, for Haitian immigrants. In doing so, this President has put more than 50,000 Haitians seeking refuge in this country in imminent danger. As a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, more specifically the Chair of the CBC Immigration Task Force, and as a child of Caribbean immigrants, I was then and remain infuriated by this Administration’s cruel, inhumane, and racist decision to end the TPS program.

“Today’s trial is critically important, as we demand a ruling that will strike down this unlawful termination for Haitian TPS. We must not let up in the fight for justice, fairness, and equity. This decision must be reversed.”

Saget et al v. Trump is one of five lawsuits currently in the courts fighting against the separation of TPS holders and their families.

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