Haitian diaspora leaders urge Pres. Biden to support the Montana Accords for restoring democracy in Haiti while Congressional leaders ask the president to stop deportations to the besieged country. The following article was published in the March-April 2022 issue of NewsNotes.
As Haitians mark yet another year of political limbo, A Way Forward in Haiti, a network of Haitian diaspora faith and community leaders, is reiterating its call on the Biden-Harris Administration to change its approach to Haiti.
“By continuing to give caretaker Prime Minister Ariel Henry a de-facto veto over Haiti’s future, the U.S. State Department is reinforcing the political interests and dynamics that have driven Haiti into misery,” said Rev. Keny Felix, Pastor of Bethel Evangelical Baptist Church in Miami Gardens, and a leader with Faith in Florida, in a statement on February 7, 2022.
“Secretary of State Blinken and Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere, Brian Nichols must send a clear signal that the winds have changed. Haitians need to hear that the U.S. supports the brave civil society and political leaders who are crafting an inclusive transition back to democracy, not the same circle of corrupt elites who are responsible for much of the violence and suffering facing Haiti,” said Dr. Francois Pierre-Louis, Faith in Action International Haiti Director, in the same statement.
Also in February, 14 leading U.S. Senators and 88 Reps, including Senators Schumer and Menendez and House Judiciary Chairman Nadler, urged a halt to Haiti expulsions. “Haiti simply cannot safely accept the repatriation of its nationals,” the members of Congress wrote, asking Pres. Biden to review treatment of Black migrants by the U.S. immigration enforcement system.
More than 20,000 Haitians have been expelled from the United States in the last year – sent back to a country overwhelmed by hurricanes, earthquakes, kidnappings, gang violence and a presidential assassination. At least 45% of the expellees are women and children. These are overwhelmingly Title 42 expulsion flights in violation of asylum protections; see, e.g., this strong denunciation in Just Security.
Faith in action: Tell Pres. Biden to stop deportations to Haiti: https://bit.ly/35chTaG