Obama has just granted a 12 month extension for the 3,600 Liberians living in the US under temporary protected status (TPS). This immigration status was set to expire on March 31, at which point many Liberians would have been forced to decide between returning to Liberia or staying in the US illegally.
On one level this extension is a good thing. Many Liberians living under TPS have children who are US citizens. The extension means that families won’t have to decide between moving their children to a country they have never known, or keeping them in the US with friends and relatives.
But there are a couple of problems. First, this extension only postpones these decisions. There are efforts underway to pass legislation that will allow all Liberians with TPS to apply for citizenship, but if this effort fails, next March we’ll be in the exact same position we’re in now.
Second, these repeated short-term extensions mean that the Liberian community constantly is devoting its organizing and advocacy energies toward making sure they’re not going to get kicked out of the country. There are a number of other priorities for Liberians in the US, and these issues don’t get much attention because of the focus on TPS.
So let’s pass a law that puts Liberians with TPS on a track to citizenship, allowing them to continue sending remittances back home that are keeping Liberians in Liberia alive, and giving Liberian advocacy groups space to work on issues like education and mental health.
Hello
It has a nice blog.
Sorry not write more, but my English is bad writing.
A hug from my country, Portugal