A federal court is expected to rule this week on the Trump administration’s decision to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for more than 200,000 Haitians. On May 28, a high-stakes legal battle with sweeping implications for hundreds of thousands of Haitian immigrants played out in a Brooklyn federal courtroom as a labor union and nine Haitian TPS holders challenged the federal government’s efforts to strip their protections and work authorization. 

The lawsuit, Haitian Evangelical Clergy Association v. Trump, which was filed in March, challenges the Trump administration’s decision to terminate Haiti’s TPS designation—a move that would make over 200,000 Haitians eligible for deportation as early as Aug. 3. Plaintiffs argue that the decision violates both the TPS statute and the Administrative Procedure Act. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is named in the suit for her role in vacating Haiti’s TPS status.

Represented by 32BJ SEIU—a labor union that includes many Haitian TPS holders among its 185,000 members—the plaintiffs are requesting partial summary judgment and provisional relief to stop the termination while the case proceeds. In response, the federal government has filed a motion to dismiss the suit entirely.

The outcome of this case could set a legal precedent for how TPS designations are made and challenged in the future. A final ruling is expected this week.

Among the lead plaintiffs is Gerald Michaud, a Haitian immigrant who received TPS in 2010 after the devastating earthquake in Haiti. Michaud has since built a life in Brooklyn with his wife, Nadège, also a TPS holder and fellow plaintiff. Michaud now works as a security officer at LaGuardia Airport in New York City and teaches martial arts at an after-school program.

“Now, as the Trump administration is trying to put an end to TPS, everything that I have worked so hard to build is at risk, and the situation in Haiti is not good,” Michaud said in a press release emailed by the union. “I filed this lawsuit not just for myself and my wife, but for hundreds of thousands of my fellow Haitians here on TPS whose lives would be upended.”

Manny Pastreich, president of 32BJ SEIU, condemned the federal government’s actions. “The Trump Administration’s attempt to circumvent the Administrative Procedure Act and the Temporary Protective Status puts the lives of hard-working immigrants at risk and weakens our nation,” Pastreich said in the press release. “If the government gets its way, hundreds of thousands of Haitian TPS holders, who have made lives, raised families, and launched careers in the United States, could be exposed to deportation on August 3. This is unconscionable.”

The lawsuit is being watched by immigrant advocacy groups, legal scholars, and policymakers, given its potential impact on long-standing TPS policy and its implications for other immigrant communities.

Haiti’s designation for TPS was initially granted due to catastrophic conditions following the 2010 earthquake. The country currently faces ongoing political instability, widespread violence, and humanitarian crises—factors the plaintiffs argue make deportation inhumane and unsafe.

Adding to the urgency surrounding this case is a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that immigrant rights groups have condemned as disastrous. In a 7-2 decision, with Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson and Sonia Sotomayor dissenting, the Court sided with the administration in revoking TPS protections for over 500,000 people from countries including Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. The decision, decried by advocacy organizations such as United We Dream, threatens to dismantle long-standing temporary protections and render hundreds of thousands of people immediately deportable.

“As we approach the 13th anniversary of the DACA [Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals] program in just a matter of weeks, today’s Supreme Court ruling is a blaring siren that the future of other programs are under extreme threat,” United We Dream wrote in an emailed press release on May 30. “Since day one, the administration has made clear its goals to carry out the largest-scale mass deportation operation our country has ever seen. While today’s ruling will have an immense impact on the lives of American families, we know that courage and resilience in this moment lies in us as working people who power this country. We are ready to show up for each other and fight to keep our communities whole.” 

The Supreme Court issued a separate decision on May 19 allowing the Trump administration to revoke TPS for more than 350,000 Venezuelans currently living and working legally in the United States.

“To be clear, the dire conditions that led the U.S. to grant TPS to Venezuelans have not changed,” Todd Schulte, president of immigration and criminal justice reform advocacy organization FWD.us, said in a public statement. “President [Donald] Trump himself once called Venezuela ‘the worst humanitarian crisis in the Western Hemisphere,’ and Secretary of State [Marco] Rubio recently referred to the Maduro regime as ‘enemies of humanity.’”

Schulte pointed out that the U.S. State Department website continues to advise Americans not to travel to Venezuela, citing threats of torture, kidnapping, and civil unrest. “Country conditions still meet the legal standard for maintaining TPS,” he said. 

Despite the Supreme Court’s decision, there have been some legal wins on a narrower scale. On May 31, U.S. District Judge Edward E. Chen in San Francisco issued an emergency order granting temporary protection to approximately 5,000 Venezuelan TPS holders who re-registered for work permits and status renewals between Jan. 17 and Feb. 5, 2025. This protection arose after Noem abruptly revoked an earlier extension granted by former DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

While Chen’s order offers a temporary lifeline, it does not apply to the broader population of 350,000 Venezuelans whose protections expired in April. Many live in South Florida and now face detention and deportation, even as their legal challenges continue. The Supreme Court’s ruling allows the government to proceed with ending TPS for Venezuelans while litigation is ongoing, but it did not rule on the underlying merits of the case.

“Now more than ever, Congress must deliver permanent protections for millions of people who are part of our society and defend a future where families never have to live in fear of being separated, where our immigration system is fair and equitable, and where our communities can truly thrive,” United We Dream wrote.

Editorial Team:
Sahar Fatima, Lead Editor
Carolyn Copeland, Top Editor
Stephanie Harris, Copy Editor