Families face separation as Haiti TPS scheme ends

At a beach house in Lakeland, Florida, Marven laughs with two women he loves dearly, his sister Rochelle and their biological mother Guerline.

Even though they’ve been separated for nearly a decade, the warmth between them is clearly evident as they celebrate his 16th birthday. Now they are afraid of being separated again.

Also celebrating is Stacey Nageli Angulo, who adopted Marven from Haiti when he was three years old after the devastating earthquake in 2010.

He helped Guerline and Rochelle come to the United States and reunite the family three years ago, as spreading gang violence triggered a new humanitarian crisis in the Caribbean island nation.

The two Haitian women, whose names we have changed for their safety, live and work legally in the United States under a program called Temporary Protected Status (TPS). It provides protection to people already in the United States who come from countries affected by war or natural disaster.

But as part of US President Donald Trump’s sweeping changes to immigration policies, TPS for 350,000 Haitians will end in February.

Rochelle, now 21, cheers as Marven blows out his candles, but Guerline’s smile falters. Two women could be deported in just a few months.

After the earthquake, Guerline lived in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, and struggled to provide for her children. She says that offering Marven for adoption “hurt” her, but she “wanted a better life for him.”

Stacey, who now renovates properties after a career in business, says she felt compelled to adopt a child from Haiti after the disaster and raised Marven with her two biological children.

When he heard about the recent violence, he began researching legal routes to the United States for Rochelle and Guerline. When the humanitarian aid program opened in 2023, they applied immediately. “Three weeks later they were approved, they were on the plane and here with us,” he says.

The two Haitian women moved into a trailer in Stacey’s driveway before renting a local apartment. Guerline now works in a hotel. Rochelle has jobs at a supermarket and a nursery and dreams of becoming a nurse.

Marven often sleeps at their house and likes the Haitian food prepared by Guerline. He says his life is now “more complete.”

However, Rochelle and Guerline are afraid to return to Haiti. According to the UN, gang violence has displaced a tenth of the population; Cases of kidnapping and murder are increasing rapidly. Rape and arson are at their peak.

Rochelle, now 21, says her biggest fear in Port-au-Prince is being kidnapped. “I was at school and saw young girls like me being kidnapped,” she says. “They demanded ransom for them, but then they couldn’t get them back,” she says, adding that she believes some of the kidnapped girls were either raped or murdered.

He says he receives heartbreaking videos every day from friends and relatives in Haiti, including burning bodies and gang clashes: “There are gunfights all the time. You can’t really go out.”

Stacey voted for President Trump in the last three presidential elections but is now horrified that Rochelle and Guerline could be sent back.

“Do we want the borders to be opened? Absolutely not. Do we want criminals to be deported? Absolutely,” he says. “But tearing families like ours apart and deporting people to countries that are absolutely unsafe… is unthinkable and unconscionable.”

TPS for Haitians has been expanded numerous times since it was first established in 2010.

But now the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says, “The environmental situation in Haiti has improved sufficiently that it is safe for Haitian citizens to return home.”

However, the US government advises its citizens not to travel there due to “kidnapping, crime, terrorist activities and civil unrest.”

The U.S. immigration service says it is not in the U.S. interest to continue the program for Haitians, citing difficulties vetting immigrants and obtaining information from Haitian law enforcement and the “serious threat posed by Haitian gangs.”

A spokesperson for DHS also told the BBC in September that TPS was being misused and abused.

The US administration says those whose TPS has expired can leave voluntarily or pursue other immigration options. Advocates say few will qualify to stay and most will go underground.

Another Haitian woman in Miami, whom we call Monique, explains that she has lived in the United States for more than 16 years. Her small house is filled with photos of her husband, son and daughter. He is the only one of them in danger of deportation; Her husband is a permanent resident, her daughter is a US citizen, and her son is still applying for a green card.

Monique, who currently works as a bus driver, was legally covered by a humanitarian program before transferring to TPS in 2010.

“Yes, it’s called Temporary Protected Status,” he says. “But if your home is safe, it’s temporary. Haiti is not safe.”

She wipes her tears, convinced that if she returns, she will lose everything and probably die: “Don’t send us to Haiti… kill us.”

More than one million people in the United States have TPS, and since 1990 people from 20 countries have been granted protection.

This year, the United States ended the practice for six countries (Afghanistan, Cameroon, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua and Venezuela). There have been numerous legal challenges, including one that delayed the end of TPS for Haitians.

In Florida, where 56% of voters support Donald Trump, many Republican supporters like Stacey told us they want immigration law enforced but are concerned about the human cost of current policies.

He thinks the Republican Party is “completely disconnected” from its voter base on immigration.

But local businessman Sam Romain, chairman of the Polk County Republicans, is less understanding: “You knew it was temporary, you built your life around a temporary status, and now… you’re upset that it’s expired. We knew what the rules were.”

When pressed about the situation in Haiti, he says he does not have the authority to assess whether it is safe enough to return to Haiti, but he believes the decision was made by qualified officials and he trusts their judgment.

Mr. Romain says he believes America is “a nation of law and order,” adding that immigration reform “must happen.”

The future is full of uncertainty for Rochelle and Guerline.

“We are told that America is the land of freedom and security,” says Rochelle. “I don’t know where we belong anymore.”

“I love my sister very much,” Marven says. “I don’t know what I would do if something happened to him.”

The three of them pose together for a photo: mother, son and daughter. But in a few months, the two of them could be gone.