A group of Haitians with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) has filed a class-action lawsuit challenging the U.S. government's decision to end deportation protections for Haitians according to a recent Miami Herald report. Filed Wednesday in federal court in the District of Columbia, the suit claims the move places lives at risk by forcing a return to a country overrun by armed gangs. 

The plaintiffs argue that the federal decision to terminate TPS protections for up to half a million Haitians failed to follow the review process mandated by Congress and was driven by racism. 

“The termination of Haiti’s TPS designation is arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, not in accordance with law, in excess of statutory authority, without observance of procedure required by law, and contrary to constitutional rights because it was motivated by unlawful discriminatory animus,” the lawsuit reportedly states.

The plaintiffs are represented by the same legal team that earlier this year successfully overturned a prior attempt to shorten Haiti’s TPS window. The firms involved include Kurzban Kurzban Tetzeli & Pratt, Just Futures Law, Giskan Solotaroff & Anderson, and Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner.

“Haiti is a nation in chaos. Even Secretary Noem admits that. The decision to strip critical TPS protections despite the extraordinary conditions in Haiti is not just cruel, it’s also unlawful,” said Sejal Zota, legal director for Just Futures Law to The Miami Herald. “The administration cannot reverse-engineer the facts to justify its politically motivated decision to terminate.”

In July, a federal judge ruled that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem did not have the legal authority to shorten Haiti’s TPS designation from 18 to 12 months and determined the designation should remain until February 3, 2026. Though the Department of Homeland Security later complied, it disagreed with the ruling. Earlier, the agency announced that TPS for Haitians would end entirely after that date.

Originally granted in response to Haiti’s devastating 2010 earthquake, TPS allows nationals from countries in crisis to remain in the U.S. with work eligibility. While DHS claimed the decision was based on improving conditions in Haiti, the official reason cited was “national interests.” Noem further asserted that TPS encourages illegal migration and claimed an unspecified percentage of TPS holders were violent criminals.

The lawsuit’s closing states: “Haitian TPS holders have a justified, statutorily guaranteed expectation that Haiti’s TPS designation will remain in place until lawfully terminated.”