BOSTON (AP) — A U.S. court ruling in Massachusetts on Friday suspended the end of Temporary Protected Status for Somali immigrants.
The ruling by U.S. District Judge Allison D. Burroughs said there would be “serious” consequences if Somalia’s TPS designation expired on Tuesday. Supporters filed an emergency motion in federal court seeking a stay on ending the designation after the Trump administration pledged last month to end it during an immigration crackdown in the Minneapolis town where many Somalis live.
“More than a thousand people face ‘numerous serious risks’, including detention and deportation, physical violence if returned to Somalia, and forced separation from their families,” the ruling said.
Burroughs said imposing the administrative stay and delaying the ruling on the extension gives both sides time to file briefs on the emergency motions.
“While the suspension is valid, the termination is null and void and has no legal effect,” the ruling said, noting that people with TPS status or pending applications will retain rights, including eligibility for work authorization and protection from deportation and detention.
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that the ruling by a judge appointed by former President Obama was the latest example of preventing Trump from “restoring the integrity of the U.S. immigration system.”
“Temporary is temporary,” the statement said. “Somalia’s national conditions have improved to the point where it no longer meets the law’s requirements for Temporary Protected Status. Allowing Somali nationals to temporarily remain in the United States goes against our national interests. The Trump Administration puts Americans first.”
Representatives of the plaintiffs who opposed the termination said in a statement that while the order is temporary and “there are many battles ahead,” they are “encouraged that today’s order provides temporary protections for all Somalis with TPS or pending TPS applications in the United States.”
