This month, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk declared, “Haiti is on the verge of an abyss.” The security and humanitarian situation has become untenable. News from the country underscores the dire situation; a cholera outbreak was announced in early October as clean water is in scarce supply. Because of the crisis, thousands of Haitians have fled their country and journeyed through Venezuela and up to Mexico and the U.S. border by foot. The United States, though publicly recognizing the urgency and depth of the crisis, has continued to send deportation flights with Haitians back to Port-au-Prince, the capital of the country. In 2021, the Biden administration designated Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Haiti, citing the worsening political situation and increased violence, but this protection from deportation only extends to Haitians who have been present in the United States before August 3, 2021. The Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Alejandro Mayorkas, must decide if country conditions in Haiti continue to merit a TPS designation, and therefore an extension, by December 5 of this year.

This brief provides an overview of major events since the 2021 TPS designation and reviews the current security and humanitarian situation in Haiti. These country conditions have led to a broad displacement of Haitians to other Latin American countries and to the United States. The brief also covers current U.S. policy toward Haitians and provides recommendations to the U.S. government to better protect Haitian migrants and asylum seekers fleeing violence.

Click here to read the full Policy and Advocacy Report by USCRI.