The Trump administration is set to eliminate an immigration program that once cleared the way for people from Haiti to come to America, legally. NBC6’s Steve Litz reports
The Trump administration is set to eliminate an immigration program that once cleared the way for people from Haiti to come to America legally.
That program is about to go away, and people from Haiti who are in the U.S. while undocumented have to leave in about one month.
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WATCH HEREMany in South Florida's Haitian community are scared about possible deportation. Immigration lawyer Patricia Elizee calls what's happening in the community an attack on people's psyche.
"They are sharing their fears," she said. "A lot of these immigration changes are geared to be a psychological warfare against immigrants that are not prepared or educated."
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The CHNV Parole Program specifically deals with immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela. Under the Biden administration, some 500,000 people from those countries were paroled into America. The goal was to deter illegal crossings and create a legal path into America for people from those countries.
Now, the Trump administration is set to terminate the program.
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Out of the four countries, experts agree Haiti is in the worst shape politically, socially and economically.
"They are deporting folks back to Haiti, even though the country is not stable, Haiti itself is going through basically a civil war with the gangs," Elizee said. "Right now is not a good time for Haitians."
While on the campaign trail and now as president, Trump has promised mass deportations. His position is that this particular immigration program CHNV is not working and not benefiting America in any way.
"Try your best to stay calm, seek out legal advice, if you cannot afford a private attorney reach out to Catholic services, reach out to a nonprofit organization, get the proper guidance that you need before you make a decision," Elizee said. "This is not the time to make a decision out of panic.
Haitians looking for a country, a home, are now looking north to Canada instead of America.
