Congresswoman Cherfilus-McCormick and Congressman Castro Spearhead Letter to Secretary Mayorkas Requesting the Redesignation and Extension of Temporary Protected Status for Nicaragua
WASHINGTON – Today, Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-FL) and Congressman Joaquin Castro (D-TX) led a bipartisan letter to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security urging Secretary Mayorkas to redesignate and extend Temporary Protected Status (“TPS”) to the Republic of Nicaragua.
In the letter, the Members urge Secretary Mayorkas to redesignate and extend TPS to Nicaragua, given the current political, economic, and humanitarian crises plaguing the Central American country.
“Nicaraguan migrants are hardworking and diligent people who deserve Temporary Protected Status in the United States,” said Congresswoman Cherfilus-McCormick. “For many Nicaraguans, America is their home. It is immoral and irresponsible to repatriate them to a country many have not been to for nearly 25 years and force them to live under the brutal Ortega-Murillo regime. Nicaraguans have contributed to this country as much as any other migrant group and deserve to maintain TPS.”
“Thousands of Nicaraguans have been in legal limbo as the courts debate the ending of the TPS designation under the Trump administration,” said Congressman Castro. “Nicaragua remains unsafe for return due to a myriad of factors, including the sustained impact of Category 4 Hurricanes Eta and Iota. Actions by the Ortega-Murillo regime that violate human rights, democracy, and security have only heightened the need for a re-designation and extension. The United States recently welcomed 222 political prisoners, who along with almost a hundred others, have had their citizenship revoked, leaving many without legal protection. I strongly urge the Biden administration to uphold our responsibility to the Nicaraguans in the United States and redesignate Nicaragua for TPS.”
The letter has been endorsed by several coalitions and organizations, including the Florida Immigrant Coalition and the Immigration Hub.
“As the daughter of Nicaraguan immigrants who came to this country and faced life without an immigration status, I understand how vital Temporary Protected Status is. TPS means family unity, safety, and opportunities. A redesignation of TPS for Nicaragua will protect individuals and families already in the United States and bring peace and comfort to those who desperately need immigration status. With TPS, over 50,000 Nicaraguans won’t have to fear deportations, face an uncertain future without a work permit, and be able to live with a freedom that is currently untenable in Nicaragua,” said Yareliz Mendez-Zamora, Federal Lead for the Florida Immigrant Coalition.
“From authorizing parole to Nicaraguans to working with leaders in the Western Hemisphere, the Biden-Harris Administration has taken critical action to address Nicaragua's precarious and dangerous conditions,” said Beatriz Lopez, Chief Political and Communications Officer of the Immigration Hub. “However, escalating political repression intensifies past natural disasters' detrimental effects. In the 1980s, my family and countless others fled Daniel Ortega’s communist regime—and now, again, this dictatorship has worsened conditions in the country. There is simply no safe return for Nicaraguan nationals currently in the United States. The urgency calls upon the Biden-Harris Administration to extend and redesignate TPS.”
In the letter, the Members write:
Dear Secretary Mayorkas:
Thank you for your service. We appreciate your concern for vulnerable populations. We write to urge you to redesignate and extend Temporary Protected Status (“TPS”) to the Republic of Nicaragua (“Nicaragua”).
As you know, under the William J. Clinton Administration, the United States first designated Nicaragua for TPS on January 5, 1999, after Hurricane Mitch devastated Central America in October 1998. The program was repeatedly renewed and extended for nearly two decades under Republican and Democratic presidential administrations.
In 2017, the Donald J. Trump Administration announced its decision to end TPS for Nicaragua, negatively impacting thousands of Nicaraguan nationals who had lived and worked in the United States continuously since December 30, 1998. As a result, TPS holders from several countries for whom the program was also terminated, including El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, the 2011 beneficiaries of Haiti, and the 2013 beneficiaries of Sudan, challenged the legality of the terminations in a lawsuit. Currently, the continuity of TPS for Nicaragua and the other countries depends on the result of the preliminary injunction in Ramos v. Wolf and the stay of proceedings order in Bhattarai v. Nielsen, respectively.
According to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, TPS is a congressionally created humanitarian program administered by the Department of Homeland Security that provides temporary relief to nationals of designated foreign countries that have been impacted by ongoing armed conflict, an environmental disaster or an epidemic, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions. As Secretary, you can redesignate and extend TPS to Nicaragua. Due to the unique socio-political conditions in the country, we strongly urge you to do so.
As mentioned above, Nicaraguans began fleeing their homeland in 1998 en masse following Hurricane Mitch. Hurricane Mitch is the second-deadliest Atlantic hurricane, resulting in 11,374 fatalities in Central America, including 3,800 in Nicaragua. As a result of Hurricane Mitch’s devastation, an estimated 2 million Nicaraguans were displaced, with many seeking refuge in the United States.
Additionally, since 2007, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and his wife and now-vice president, Rosario Murillo, have ruled the country with an authoritarian and repressive hand. On April 3, 2018, the Indio-Maíz fire destroyed over 5,400 hectares of land, impacting the indigenous nation of the Rama-Kriol. After massive, proposed reforms to social security networks that would negatively impact the elderly populations, students rose in protest and were met with violent repression. Since 2018, over 500 individuals have been killed. As a result, more than 160,000 Nicaraguans have fled to Costa Rica. In 2021, during the country’s presidential election, to ensure he was elected to a fourth consecutive term, President Ortega changed the country’s laws, silenced the media, and incarcerated candidates who planned to run against him.
The increasingly totalitarian nature of the Ortega-Murillo regime and the brutal political repression Nicaraguans face in their daily lives exacerbate the urgent need for the Biden Administration to redesignate and extend TPS to Nicaragua. Last week, President Ortega sent 222 Nicaraguan political prisoners to the United States in one of the most massive releases in U.S. history. Shortly after, the Nicaraguan government stripped the prisoners of their citizenship. While the newly released prisoners have been granted humanitarian parole to remain in the United States for two years, their futures remain uncertain. Further illustrating the deterioration of human rights in Nicaragua, Pope Francis expressed concern about the sentencing of Bishop Rolando Álvarez to 26 years in prison in the regime’s latest move against the Catholic Church and government opponents.
If you fail to redesignate and extend TPS to Nicaragua, we fear that thousands of Nicaraguans living in the United States will have to seek an alternative lawful immigration status or leave the U.S. altogether should the Trump Administration’s termination take effect. This is an unconscionable reality for many Nicaraguans who have lawfully resided and worked in the United States for decades and do not desire to live under President Ortega’s authoritarian regime. The possibility of Nicaraguans having to return to their homelands will have catastrophic effects on their families, livelihoods, and well-being.
As we await the judicial decision in Ramos, the Biden Administration must have a proactive plan in place and be prepared to assist Nicaraguans should the outcome of the preliminary injunction prove unfavorable.
We respectfully request that you redesignate and extend TPS to Nicaraguans in your authority as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.
Thank you in advance for your attention to this critical matter. We appreciate your efforts and are willing and able to provide any support or assistance you may need.