New York Attorney General Letitia James on Monday, Mar. 16, co-led a coalition of 18 other attorneys general in urging the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) to preserve the legal status of hundreds of thousands of Haitian immigrants, including many who have lived and worked in the US for over a decade.
Last week, President Donald J. Trump asked SCOTUS for a stay that would let his administration end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for more than 350,000 Haitians, after a lower court ruled that the administration had violated the law when it attempted to terminate the critical protections.
In an amicus brief filed on Monday, James and the coalition argue that terminating TPS for Haitians would jeopardize public health, public safety, and local economies, while upending the lives of countless families and devastating communities across the United States.
“Our nation was founded as a land of opportunity and refuge for those fleeing danger or instability,” said Attorney General James. “Now, the Trump administration seeks to break that promise and send thousands of hardworking immigrants back to a country facing extraordinary violence and instability.
“Our communities depend on, and are strengthened by, our immigrant neighbors,” she added. “I am imploring the Supreme Court to do the right thing and protect these families from being needlessly torn apart.”
Following a devastating earthquake in 2010, James noted that the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) granted TPS to immigrants from Haiti escaping unsafe conditions and political instability.
She said the federal government has extended this protection multiple times since the initial designation, “as instability and safety concerns in Haiti have persisted and, in recent years, worsened.”
But, despite the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Haiti, the New York Attorney General said the Trump administration last year moved to end protections for Haitian TPS holders – nearly a quarter of all TPS holders nationwide.
James and the coalition argue that eliminating TPS for Haitians would cause chaos for hundreds of thousands of families, including the many US citizens who live with a Haitian family member with TPS.
As of 2022, the attorneys general say more than 200,000 US citizens, including about 87,000 children, were living with a Haitian TPS holder.
The attorneys general emphasize that revoking these individuals’ legal status would put countless families in “an impossible position.
“Parents with TPS would be forced to choose between abandoning their children and returning to Haiti alone, taking their families with them to a dangerous and unfamiliar country, or remaining in the United States without legal status and with the constant fear of separation and deportation,” they say.
As Attorney General James and the coalition explain in the amicus brief, canceling Haitian TPS holders’ legal status would also harm states’ economies, public health, and public safety.
“Haitians are critical members of New York’s workforce, filling essential roles in healthcare, education, construction, and other industries,” says the coalition, stating that, at least 56,000 Haitian New Yorkers currently have TPS.
“Terminating their legal status would jeopardize their work permits, harming local economies and making it harder for families to make ends meet,” the coalition argues, adding that Haitian TPS holders pay over US$140 million annually in New York state and local taxes and contribute over US$800 million to the state’s economy.
The coalition also says that ending work authorizations would deprive many families of employer-sponsored health insurance, “making it harder for vulnerable people to access care and increasing public health risks.
“Without legal status, Haitian immigrants and their loved ones may also be less likely to seek treatment at hospitals and clinics, report crimes, serve as witnesses, or otherwise interact with law enforcement,” the coalition says.
Attorney General James and the coalition are urging the Supreme Court to protect Haitian immigrants and communities nationwide by leaving in place the lower court order that prevents the Trump administration from terminating TPS for more than 350,000 Haitians.
Joining James in submitting Monday’s brief are the attorneys general of California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and the District of Columbia.
Last month, Attorney General James co-led 17 other attorneys general in a similar amicus brief urging the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia to protect TPS for Haitians.
In November 2025, she led 15 other attorneys general in filing an amicus brief to defend TPS for Haitian and Venezuelan immigrants.
In September 2025, Attorney General James co-led a coalition of 18 other attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in the US District Court for the District of Columbia defending TPS for Haitian immigrants.
The San Diego, CA-based Haitian Bridge Alliance (HBA) has also applauded US Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) for her “continued leadership” in championing TPS extension for Haitian nationals and filing a discharge petition that could compel the US House of Representatives to take up legislation to extend TPS for more than 300,000 Haitians living in the United States.
Pursuant to clause 2 of rule XV, Pressley moved “to discharge the Committee on Rules from the consideration of the resolution (H.Res. 965) entitled, a resolution providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 1689), to require the Secretary of Homeland Security to designate Haiti for temporary protected status, which was referred to said committee on Dec. 18, 2025.”
HBA also thanked the 155 members of Congress, including Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffreis, for signing the petition.
“We urge the 63 additional members of Congress to swiftly sign on to reach the 218 votes needed to proceed with this legislative process,” HBA Executive Director Guerline Jozef told Caribbean Life.
“The discharge petition — filed in the US House — represents a mechanism that would bring the bill directly to the floor for a vote if the requisite number of signatures is gathered,” she added, stating that “TPS provides critical legal protections that allow individuals from countries experiencing ongoing armed conflict, environmental disasters, or extraordinary insecurity to remain in the United States and work legally without fear of deportation.
“Given the protracted humanitarian and security crisis in Haiti, sustained TPS designation is essential to protecting families who have contributed to American communities for years,” Jozef continued. “Haitian Bridge Alliance strongly commends Rep. Pressley for her leadership in pursuing every viable legislative route, including the discharge petition, to ensure that Haitian TPS holders are not left in legal limbo and deported to a country that is facing one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world.”
Jozef said thousands of Haitian families are “vital contributors to local economies, schools, churches, and communities across the United States.
“We urge Members of Congress to stand with them, to sign on to the discharge petition, and to demonstrate through action that the United States values the dignity, safety, and economic contributions of Haitian TPS holders,” she said.
