NEW YORK, Sept 11, CMC – New York City Council Member Farah N. Louis, is calling on the United States Senate to pass legislation and for President Donald Trump to sign the measure requiring the Secretary of Homeland Security to designate Haiti for Temporary Protected Status (TPS).
The resolution comes as Haiti continues to face severe political instability, widespread gang violence, displacement, food insecurity, and a humanitarian crisis.
According to 2026 United Nations reporting cited in the resolution, nearly 1.47 million people remain displaced by violence and 5.8 million people face food insecurity in the French-speaking Caribbean country.
Louis, the daughter of Haitian and Bahamian immigrants, told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) that TPS provides eligible nationals of designated countries with protection from deportation and authorization to work legally in the United States when extraordinary conditions make safe return impossible.
Louis, who on Thursday introduced resolution, noted that Haiti was first designated for TPS following the devastating 2010 earthquake, which killed an estimated 220,000 people, injured more than 300,000, and left approximately 1.5 million people homeless.
“The resolution underscores the direct impact of the loss of TPS on New York City,” said Louis, adding that an estimated 350,000 Haitian nationals have held TPS in the United States, including approximately 40,000 in New York.
“New York City is home to one of the nation’s largest Haitian immigrant communities, with a vibrant cultural and economic presence that is especially visible in Flatbush’s Little Haiti, a neighborhood formally recognized for its Haitian culture and community. Haiti is facing a profound humanitarian and security crisis, and sending Haitian families back into these conditions is unconscionable.
“Haitian New Yorkers are our neighbours, our workers, our business owners, our parents and our community leaders. They have built lives and contributed to the fabric of this city, and they deserve the opportunity to continue doing so safely and legally”.
She said New York City must stand with the Haitian community, “and we must use every level of government to demand that TPS protections are restored”.
The resolution notes that, in June 2025, the DHS announced its decision to terminate Haiti’s TPS designation. Haitian nationals subsequently challenged the decision in federal court, temporarily preserving their protections.
However, on June 25, 2026, the US Supreme Court reversed lower-court orders that had postponed the termination, allowing the Trump administration to end Haiti’s TPS designation.
US Senate Democratic Leader Charles E. Schumer, has also called for the continuation of TPS protections for Haitians.
In remarks urging the US Senate to support legislation extending TPS for Haiti, Schumer described the Trump administration’s decision to cancel TPS as “cruel and counterproductive, especially as Haiti remains unstable and unsafe.
“Haitians living in the United States under TPS are legally working, paying taxes, and greatly boosting the state economy to the tune of $1.1 billion per year,” he said.
“I’m grateful to Council Member Farah Louis for her leadership in supporting my legislation to restore TPS for Haitians, and I urge Senate Republicans to join me in passing this bill ASAP.”
Schumer said, emphasising New York’s particular connection to the Haitian community and his commitment to protecting Haitian New Yorkers.
The federal legislation would require the Secretary of Homeland Security to designate Haiti for TPS through three months after January 20, 2029.
Louis said enactment of the federal legislation would preserve employment authorization and protection from removal for qualifying Haitian nationals, help prevent displacement of Haitian families, and reduce further disruption to communities in New York City and across the country.
“The New York City Council resolution calls upon the United States Senate to pass S.4814 and the President to sign it into law, providing qualifying Haitian nationals with renewed protection from removal and authorization to work legally in the United States,” she said.
The San, Diego, California-based Haitian Bridge Alliance (HBA) has also urged the US Senate to pass H.R. 1689, a Discharge Petition extending TPS for more than 350,000 Haitian nationals for three years and restoring work authorization for eligible recipients.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul has described as “callous, reckless and inhumane” the Trump administration’s termination of TPS for Haitians and other immigrants.
CMC/nk/ir/2026