by Christine Persichette
Surrounded by uncertainty and the possibility of deportation, Haitian immigrants in the Diocese of Brooklyn were comforted by their bishop.
Bishop Robert Brennan celebrated a Mass of solidarity and healing for people affected by the end of Temporary Protected Status for Haiti at St. Jerome Church in East Flatbush, Brooklyn.
Temporary Protected Status, known as TPS, allows people from countries experiencing crises because of wars or other dangerous conditions to legally live and work in the United States until it is safe for them to return.
But even though Haiti continues to be plagued by violence, an estimated 300,000 to 350,000 Haitian immigrants in the United States, including at least 20,000 in Brooklyn and Queens, could face deportation.
Many parishioners at St. Jerome’s who were granted TPS stayed home, fearing they could be arrested.
Bishop Brennan described the Haitian immigrants as people who came to the United States in good faith, not people who gamed the system.
He said ending TPS is a very big disappointment and called the decision morally unjust and wrong. He also said it is not in the best interest of the United States.