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CHICAGO IS OUR HOME: HAITIANS LEFT IN IMMIGRATION LIMBO

AMBI OF CARS DRIVING BY UNDER NEXT TRACKS

MARIA: I’M DEEP ON THE SOUTH OF CHICAGO. ON A SLEEPY STREET JUST A FEW CARS ARE CRUISING BY. AND I’M STANDING IN FRONT OF A MODEST PROTESTANT CHURCH THAT SITS ON A CORNER LOT. THE YARD HERE IS A LITTLE OVERGROWN AND THERE’S A BLACK METAL FENCE SURROUNDING THE PERIMETER. THIS IS THE CHICAGO BETHLEHEM FRENCH S-D-A CHURCH. SDA, SEVENTH DAY ADVENIST. AND THIS HAS BEEN PART OF THIS COMMUNITY SINCE THE LATE 1960S. PASTOR ALLENS GILLES IS WAITING FOR ME IN FRONT OF BIG GLASS DOORS.

MARIA AND PASTOR GILLES HAVE SMALL INTERACTIONS IN FRENCH 

MARIA: PASTOR GILLES HAS LIVED IN THE SOUTH SIDE OF CHICAGO SINCE 2019. HE’S FROM HAITI AND SPEAKS FRENCH, HAITIAN CREOLE AND ENGLISH.

PASTOR GILLES: “I’M LOOKING FOR MY KEYS, WE’RE IN THE SOUTH SIDE OF CHICAGO, SO WE NEED TO BE CAREFUL.”

MARIA: WE MAKE SMALL TALK WHILE HE FINDS THE KEYS TO THE CHURCH. BECAUSE THEY’RE ONLY OPEN WHEN THEY HAVE SERVICE. AND THAT USUALLY TAKES PLACE ON THE WEEKENDS.

MARIA:  OH MY GOD, THIS IS SO BEAUTIFUL.

MARIA: INSIDE, THERE’S A STAGE ADORNED WITH WHITE FLOWER ARRAIGNMENTS. THERE’S A DRUM SET AND A SLEEK BLACK KEYBOARD. AND THERE’S A TABLE DRAPED IN A WHITE BEADED FABRIC THAT FLOWS DOWN TO THE FLOOR. AND THERE ARE TV SCREENS ON THE WALLS.

MARIA: (MARIA AND TEAM REACTING) THEY HAVE CHAIRS ON EITHER SIDE OF THE AISLES COMING DOWN IN WHITE WITH FLOWERS AND RIBBONS.

MARIA: PASTOR GILLES SAYS THEY’RE PREPARING FOR AN UPCOMING RELIGIOUS CEREMONY. AS WE SET-UP FOR THE INTERVIEW, WE ASK HIM IF HE’S COMFORTABLE WITH US ALSO RECORDING SOME VIDEO.

PASTOR GILLES: “UH (HESITATION), I DON’T MIND, AS LONG AS YOU DON’T WORK FOR ICE.”

MUSIC IN 

MARIA: “AS LONG AS YOU DON’T WORK FOR ICE.” PASTOR GILLE IS JOKING, OF COURSE. BUT BEHIND THE FUNNY BANTER THERE’S ANXIOUSNESS. AND THE SAD ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF A REALITY THAT HE AND HIS CONGREGANTS ARE LIVING WITH EVERY DAY. FEAR. UNRELENTING FEAR.

MUSIC

MARIA: FROM FUTURO MEDIA, IT’S LATINO USA. I’M MARIA HINOJOSA. TODAY, THE ENDING OF TPS FOR HAITIANS IN THE U.S. AND WHAT THAT LOOKS, AND FEELS LIKE, ON THE DEEP SOUTH SIDE OF CHICAGO.

MUSIC OUT

MARIA: ON JULY 27 2026, THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ELIMINATED TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS – OR TPS – FOR HAITIANS ACROSS THE COUNTRY.

ARCHIVAL: “HUGE NEWS FROM THE SUPREME COURT IN WASHINGTON WITH THE JUSTICES SPLITTING ALONG IDEOLOGICAL LINES SIDING WITH THE WHITE HOUSE. THAT INCLUDES ALLOWING THE ADMINISTRATION TO REMOVE THOSE TPS DEPORTATION PROTECTIONS FOR THOUSANDS HAITIAN IMMIGRANTS.”

MARIA: THIS MEANS THAT MORE THAN 330,000 PEOPLE WITH THIS PERMIT ARE NO LONGER ABLE TO LEGALLY WORK. AND THEY ARE NOW EVEN MORE VULNERABLE TO DEPORTATION. IT’S A STATE OF LIMBO CREATED BY THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION.

MUSIC IN 

MARIA: LEGAL EXPERTS SAY THAT THE MAJORITY OF PEOPLE WHO LOST TPS, WILL MOST LIKELY NOT BE ELIGIBLE FOR ANOTHER TYPE OF IMMIGRATION STATUS TO LEGALLY REMAIN IN THE U.S. SINCE TPS ENDED IN LATE JULY, ABOUT 500 HAITIANS HAVE BEEN DEPORTED BACK TO HAIT. AND THERE’S BEEN REPORTS OF HAITIANS BEING MONITORED, AND TRACKED, BY THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY.

ARCHIVAL: “TODAY WE’RE LEARNING THAT SOME HAITIANS IN SPRINGFIELD ARE BEING CALLED INTO ICE OFFICES TO BE FITTED WITH ANKLE MONITORS.”

MARIA: ACCORDING TO THE MIGRATION POLICY INSTITUTE IN 2024, ALMOST 900,000 HAITIAN IMMIGRANTS LIVE IN THE U.S. THAT’S ABOUT 2 PERCENT OF ALL U.S. IMMIGRANTS. AND ONE OF THE MOST RECENT GROUPS OF HAITIANS THAT ENDED UP COMING TO THE U.S. OCCURRED IN 2010 AFTER A DEADLY EARTHQUAKE IN HAITI. AND THAT WAS DURING THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION.

ARCHIVAL: “THE CARIBBEAN ISLAND NATION IS BEING ROCKED BY ITS BIGGEST EARTHQUAKE IN MORE THAN 200 YEARS. THE 7.0 QUAKE HIT JUST SOUTH OF CAPITAL PORT-AU-PRINCE AND WAS FOLLOWED BY TWO DOZEN STRONG AFTERSHOCKS.” 

MARIA: THE EARTHQUAKE KILLED OVER 220,000 PEOPLE AND LEFT BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN DAMAGES. SHORTLY AFTER THE QUAKE, THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION GRANTED TPS TO HAITIANS WHO WERE ALREADY LIVING IN THE U.S. BECAUSE THEY BELIEVED IT WAS TOO DANGEROUS FOR THEM TO RETURN TO HAITI.

OBAMA: WE ARE NOT JUST BEGINNING TO LEARN THE EXTENT OF THE DEVASTATION, BUT THE REPORTS AND IMAGES WE’VE SEEN OF COLLAPSED HOSPITALS, CRUMBLED HOMES AND MEN AND WOMEN CARRYING THEIR INJURED NEIGHBORS THROUGH THE STREETS ARE TRULY HEART WRENCHING.” 

MARIA: IN THE YEARS FOLLOWING, TPS WOULD CONTINUE TO BE REINSTATED. AND NEW IMMIGRANTS COULD BECOME ELIGIBLE.

MUSIC OUT 

MARIA: WHILE THE MAJORITY OF HAITIANS LIVE IN NEW YORK AND FLORIDA. THERE’S A SMALL, AND GROWING, COMMUNITY IN CHICAGO. AROUND 40,000 HAITIANS LIVE HERE. MANY SAY THEY FEEL A CONNECTION TO THIS CITY BECAUSE IT WAS FOUNDED BY A MAN OF HAITIAN DESCENT IN THE LATE 1700S. A FUR TRADER AND MERCHANT CALLED JEAN BAPTISTE POINTE DU SABLE. AS A KID GROWING UP HERE I LEARNED ABOUT DUSABLE AND HE WAS REVERED. THE HAITIAN PRESENCE THOUGH SMALL, HAS ALWAYS BEEN HERE… INCLUDING IN THE SOUTH SIDE, WHERE PASTOR ALLENS GILLES LIVES AND PREACHES.

SOUND OF PASTOR PREACHING….

MARIA: ON A SATURDAY MORNING, A FEW DOZEN CONGREGANTS SAT IN THE PEWS DRESSED TO THE T. THE MEN IN DARK SUITS, THE WOMEN IN LONG WHITE DRESSES AND WHITE CHURCH HATS.  NODDING THEIR HEADS AS PASTOR GILLES DELIVERED HIS SERMON.

PASTOR GILLES: SOUND OF SERMON 

MARIA: MOST OF HIS CONGREGATION IS HAITIAN OR OF HAITIAN DESCENT.  AND THOSE STILL COMING TO CHURCH SAY THEY ARE WORRIED ABOUT THEIR FAMILIES, FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS. LIKE NICOLE HANRY WHO LIVES IN A SUBURB NEAR THE SOUTHSIDE OF CHICAGO.

NICOLE HANRY:  THOSE PEOPLE, THEY ARE VERY SCARED ABOUT TO GO OUTSIDE TO SHOP AND THEN TO GO TO WORK. AND THEN THE CHURCH AND THE COMMUNITY NEED TO COME TO VISIT THEM AND THEN PROVIDE FOOD FOR THEM. “I KNOW ONE OF GUY, HE’S VERY SCARED. THIS GUY, HIS FAMILY ARE IN HAITI, THREE KIDS AND HIS WIFE. HE DON’T HAVE MONEY TO SEND TO THEM  AND THEN HE SAY, “YEAH, I DON’T KNOW NOW WHAT TO DO. I DON’T KNOW WHAT’S GOING ON FOR NOW.” BUT HE IS VERY DEPRESSED.”

GUY EUGENE:  WELL, THE EMOTION IS… I DON’T WANNA SAY ANGER.

MARIA: GUY EUGENE IS A FIRST GENERATION CHICAGOAN. HIS PARENTS WERE BORN AND RAISED IN HAITI.

GUY EUGENE:  YOU SEE A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT ARE DISAPPOINTED. A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT ARE ON EDGE. THEY, YOU DON’T KNOW IF YOU CAN GO OUTSIDE. YOU DON’T KNOW IF YOU CAN GO SHOPPING. YOU HEAR A LOT OF ICE IN DIFFERENT PLACES.

MARIA: MARIE LOURDES SAINVILUS ELIS WAS BORN IN HAITI. BUT HAS LIVED IN CHICAGO FOR MORE THAN SIX DECADES. SHE KNOWS SO MANY HAITIANS WHO SOLD EVERYTHING THEY HAD JUST COME TO THE UNITED STATES.

MARIE LOURDES SAINVILUS ELIS: HAITI REALLY IS NOT READY TO HAVE THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY THOUSAND PEOPLE COME BACK BECAUSE THERE’S NOWHERE TO GO.

MARIA: THERE ARE COUNTLESS STORIES LIKE THIS, AND PASTOR GILLES HEARS THEM ALL. HE SAYS IT’S PAINFUL.

PASTOR GILLES: AND IN THIS CHURCH, THERE ARE MANY MEMBERS, NOT ONLY THEY LOSE A JOB, BUT ALSO THEY ARE AFRAID. THEY ARE AFRAID TO EVEN COME TO THE CHURCH. THEY ARE AFRAID TO PARTICIPATE IN ANY GATHERING, SOCIAL GATHERING, OR OTHER GATHERING THAT EXISTS IN THIS CITY.

MARIA: HE SAYS PEOPLE ARE JUST STAYING HOME. EVEN FOR HIS  SATURDAY SERMONS, WHICH ARE USUALLY HIS BUSIEST.

MARIA:  SO FOR EXAMPLE, A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO ON A SATURDAY, WOULD THE CHURCH BE FULL?

PASTOR GILLES: BASED ON OUR MEMBERSHIP, YES. 

MARIA: AND NOW, ON A SATURDAY?

PASTOR GILLES: ON A SATURDAY IT’S APPEARS TO BE EMPTY.

MARIA: BACK IN THE OLD DAYS, GILLES SAYS ANYWHERE BETWEEN 200 TO 300 PEOPLE WOULD SHOW UP. BUT SINCE TPS ENDED, THAT NUMBER HAS BEEN CUT BY HALF.

MARIA:  WHAT DOES THAT DO FOR YOU, PASTOR GILLES?

PASTOR GILLES: WELL I GOTTA LIVE WITH THIS REALITY. I CANNOT FORCE THEM TO COME. IF I WERE IN THEIR SITUATION, I PROBABLY WOULD’VE HAVE DONE EXACTLY THE SAME THING, BECAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED. YOU HAVE TO LIVE WITH THE MINDSET THAT SOMETHING CAN HAPPEN. AND WORST CASE, IF YOU WERE TO BE DEPORTED, HAVE A PLAN. IF YOU WERE TO GO TO HAITI, YOU HAVE TO PLAN.

MARIA: BUT PASTOR GILLES SAYS THE FEAR AND DESPERATION ARE TANGIBLE.

PASTOR GILLES: THE ONLY THING THAT WE CAN DO IS TO PRAY FOR THEM. GOD HAS THE LAST WORD.

MARIA: AND THESE FEELINGS ARE ECHOED ACROSS THE  COUNTRY.

MUSIC IN 

MARIA: YOU SEE IT IN NEWS REPORTS… LIKE WITH MONSANTO MALER. WHO BROKE INTO TEARS AFTER OFFICIALS PLACED AND ANKLE MONITOR ON HIM DURING AN ICE CHECK-IN IN BLUE ASH, OHIO.

ARCHIVAL:  (CRYING AMBI)

MARIA: A HAITIAN MAN WHO’D BEEN IN THE COUNTRY SINCE 2023, NOW BEING OUTFITTED WITH A TRACKING DEVICE THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE TO HIDE. OR THE STORY OF 20-YEAR-OLD PIERRE DAMAS BEL. HE HAD RECENTLY STARTED COLLEGE IN OHIO WHEN HE LOST HIS TPS. THEN CAME THE BLACK CONTRAPTION STRAPPED AROUND HIS ANKLE . AND SOON AFTER, HE DIED BY APPARENT SUICIDE.

ARCHIVAL: HIS FAMILY SAYS THE SHAME PROMPTED HIM TO WALK INTO THE PATH OF A TRUCK ON INTERSTATE 70.

MARIA: THIS IS THE TOLL OF BEING FLUNG INTO UNCERTAINTY.

MUSIC 

MARIA: AFTER THE BREAK… WE HEAR DIRECTLY FROM A HAITIAN MAN WHO RECENTLY LOST HIS TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS. AND LATER WE LOOK AT HOW THIS ALL AFFECTS THE ECONOMY.

PASTOR GILLES: WHEN WE REMOVE HIGHLY PRODUCTIVE, LAW-ABIDING, LONG-TERM IMMIGRANT WORKERS FROM THEIR JOBS THAT’S GONNA DIRECTLY HIT AMERICANS IN THE POCKETBOOKS.

MARIA: STAY WITH US, NO TE VAYAS.

BREAK

MARIA: IT’S LATINO USA, I’M MARIA HINOJOSA. BEFORE THE BREAK WE HEARD FROM PASTOR GILLES ABOUT THE SPIRITUAL TOLL THAT THE ENDING OF TPS IS HAVING ON HAITIAN MEMBERS OF HIS CHURCH AND HIS COMMUNITY, DEEP ON CHICAGO’S SOUTH SIDE. NOW WE HEAR FROM A MAN WHO RECENTLY LOST TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS.

AMBI OF PART SETTING UP MIC OR SAYING TO MARIA OR A POP OF WHATEVER WITH HIS VOICE

MARIA: I’M GOING TO CALL THIS MAN PATRICK. THAT’S NOT HIS REAL NAME, BUT HE ASKED US TO PROTECT HIS IDENTENITY BECAUSE HE’S FEARFUL THAT SPEAKING TO THE PRESS COULD FURTHER MAKE HIM A TARGET FOR DEPORTATION. PATRICK IS 46-YEARS-OLD. HE SAYS HE DECIDED TO LEAVE HAITI IN 2022, AFTER A FRIGHTENING ENCOUNTER.

MUSIC IN

MARIA: IT WAS AN EARLY MORNING DURING THE WORK WEEK.

PATRICK:  I REMEMBER I WAS WORKING IN NGO AND I WAS DRIVING ON THE ROAD GOING TO MY JOB AND IT WAS AFTER THE ASSASSINATION OF THE PRESIDENT.

ARCHIVAL: TONIGHT THE FBI AND THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY DISPATCHING SENIOR OFFICIALS TO HAITI TO HELP INVESTIGATE THE BRUTAL ASSASINATION OF PRESIDENT JOVENNEL MOIISE. THE COUNTRY IN UTTER TURMOIL.

MARIA: PATRICK WAS ON HIS USUAL ROUTE TO WORK. WHICH HE TOOK DESPITE KNOWING THAT SOME OF THE AREAS HE HAD TO DRIVE THROUGH WERE CONTROLLED BY GANGS.

PATRICK: WHEN I LOOK AT THE ROAD, IT WAS LITTLE BIT NEARLY EMPTY. AND THERE WAS TWO MOTORCYCLES PEOPLE BEFORE ME.

MARIA: THE TWO PEOPLE ON MOTORCYCLES WERE LESS THAN 100 FEET AWAY FROM HIM.

PATRICK: AND SUDDENLY I SAW TWO GUYS WITH GUNSHOT, LONG ARM, LONG GUN, GETTING OUT AND PUT THEM INSIDE THE CORRIDOR.

MARIA: TWO MEN WITH GUNS CAME OUT OF A NEARBY CORRIDOR….. RUSHED INTO THE STREET, GRABBED THE MEN OFF THEIR MOTORCYCLES, AND DRAGGED THEM TO A NEARBY ALLEYWAY. PATRICK IMMEDIATELY HIT THE BREAK. WORRIED THAT THE MEN WOULD SHOOT AT HIM. THEN, HE SPED OFF. IT WAS A CLOSE-CALL, HE SAYS. AND IT SHOOK HIM TO HIS CORE.

PATRICK: BECAUSE I KNOW IT WAS, THE SITUATION GET WORSEN, BUT I NEVER THINK THAT I WAS SO CLOSE TO BE KIDNAPPED TOO.

MARIA: AFTER THE ASSASINATION OF THE PRESIDENT OF HAITI IN 2021 THE COUNTRY WAS THROWN INTO POLITICAL CHAOS. ARMED GANGS MANAGED TO TAKE CONTROL OF THE MAJORITY OF HAITI’S CAPITAL. THE CONTROL EXPANDED TO OTHER PARTS OF THE COUNTRY. THERE WAS A RISE IN KIDNAPPINGS RAMPANT VIOLENCE, AND ECONOMIC INSECURITY.

PATRICK: THAT’S WHEN I DECIDE IT’S TIME. 

MUSIC OUT 

MARIA: PATRICK LEFT HAITI. HE CAME TO THE U.S. AND A FEW MONTHS LATER, HE GOT TPS. IN LATE 2022, UNDER THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION, THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY EXTENDED TPS FOR HAITIANS, AND INCREASED THE POOL OF ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS. PATRICK ARRIVED IN THE SOUTH SIDE OF CHICAGO IN JULY OF 2022. PATRICK CHOSE CHICAGO BECAUSE HE ALREADY HAD SOME FAMILY MEMBERS THERE. BUT  EVEN THOUGH I’M IN CHICAGO TODAY, WE’RE SPEAKING VIRTUALLY. HE IS OUT OF TOWN. IN PART,  BECAUSE HE’S VISITING NEARBY FAMILY IN MICHIGAN. BUT THERE’S ANOTHER REASON.

PATRICK: WHEN YOU ARE NOT LEGALLY IN A COUNTRY, YOU HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU DON’T HAVE ONE SPOT. BECAUSE WITH ONE SPOT, IT’S EASY TO FIND YOU.

MARIA: HE’S BEEN BOUNCING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN THESE TWO PLACES. TRYING TO FLY UNDER THE RADAR.

PATRICK: THAT ALLOW ME TO SEE PEOPLE, TO TALK TO PEOPLE, AND TO AVOID THOSE KIND OF STUFF THAT WHEN YOU GO OUT, THEY CAN TRAP YOU AND PUT CHAINS IN YOUR FEET.

MARIA: AND WHEN HE’S NOT IN  MICHIGAN,  HE STAYS PUT IN HIS HOUSE.

PATRICK: TRYING TO STAY AWAY FROM THE WINDOW SOMETIMES, TRYING TO STAY AWAY FROM THE CROWD, AND TRYING TO A LITTLE BIT DISCREET.

MARIA: …A BIT MORE SEDENTARY THAN HE’S USED TO.

PATRICK: BELIEVE ME. MY BELLY IS GROWING RIGHT NOW. BECAUSE SOMETIMES YOU WALK A LOT, YOU MAKE EXERCISES, YOU GO TO WORK, SO YOU BURN CARBS.

MARIA: NOT MUCH WALKING OUTSIDE NOWADAYS, HE SAYS. THAT’S WHY WHEN HE TRAVELS TO MICHIGAN AND SEES HIS FAMILY, DESPITE THE RISKS. HE SAYS. IT HELPS TAKE HIS MIND OFF OF ALL THE STRESS AND SADNESS THAT HE’S HAD SINCE TPS ENDED.

PATRICK: IT’S LIKE DRIVING A TRUCK. YOU MAKE SURE YOU GOT A PLAN, YOU GOT AN ITINERARY, AND SUDDENLY YOU RUN OUT, YOU RUN OUT OF GAS.

MARIA: HE DID EVERYTHING BY THE BOOK AND APPLIED FOR TPS. BUT NOW…

PATRICK: ONCE YOU’VE BEEN CUT OFF OF THAT LEGALITY, YOU BECOME ILLEGAL.

MARIA: SINCE ENDING TPS, THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION HAS INCREASED  THE AMOUNT OF DEPORTATION FLIGHTS TO HAITI. AND IT IS WORTH NOTING THAT THE STATE DEPARTMENT STILL CLASSIFIES HAITI AS A LEVEL RED COUNTRY. THE HIGHEST THREAT LEVEL. IT EVEN ADVISES AMERICANS NOT TO TRAVEL THERE BECAUSE OF THE THREAT OF TERRORISM, UNREST, AND LIMITED ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE. AND NOW PATRICK IS DREADING THE THOUGHT OF HAVING TO RETURN. HE’S LIVED HERE IN CHICAGO FOR MORE THAN FOUR YEARS. AND HE’S SCARED OF THE VIOLENCE HAPPENING THERE RIGHT NOW.

PATRICK: A LOT OF THINGS HAVE BEEN BUILT, A LOT OF RELATIONSHIP HAVE BEEN BUILT, A LOT OF NETWORK HAVE BEEN BUILT, AND ALL ARE INTERCONNECTED. WHEN YOU STOP WORKING, YOU STOP PAYING BILLS, YOUR INSURANCE CAR, YOU CAN’T HAVE DRIVER LICENSE. THERE’S A LOT OF THINGS HAPPENING WITH ONE DECISION. YOU FEEL THE EMPTINESS.

MARIA: AND EVEN THOUGH THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DOESN’T WANT PATRICK HERE, HE SAYS HE’S STILL A PROUD CHICAGOAN. HE’S HONORED TO LIVE IN THE SAME CITY THAT HELPED SHAPE THE OBAMAS. AND HE’S ESPECIALLY PROUD ABOUT THE HISTORICAL FIGURE I MENTIONED EARLIER: JEAN BAPTISTE POINTE DE SABLE. THE FIRST NON-INDIGENOUS SETTLER OF CHICAGO, A MAN OF HAITIAN DECENT…

PATRICK: YOU IMAGINE THAT IT ONE OF THE GREATEST HISTORY FOR HAITIAN PEOPLE TO KNOW THAT YOU CREATE LIFE FOR PEOPLE.

MARIA: IT’S A PRIDE THAT MANY OTHER HAITIANS IN CHICAGO ALSO FEEL. THAT ONE OF THEIR OWN FOUNDED THE CITY THAT WOULD ONE DAY BECOME THEIR HOME.

AMBI

MERLYN JOSE:  SO THIS IS LYOR’S CAFE. MY COUSIN OWNS IT, JEAN CLAUDE, WELL, WE ARE THREE YEARS OLD.”

MARIA: MERLYN JOSE IS ONE OF THE OWNERS OF LIOR’S CAFE: NOW, CHICAGO IS A PROUD FOODIE TOWN, BUT THERE ARE ONLY TWO HAITIAN RESTAURANTS IN THE CITY AND LIOR’S IS THE ONLY HAITIAN RESTAURANT ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF CHICAGO. IT’S A FAMILY BUSINESS. OUTSIDE OF THE RESTAURANT IS A GIANT MURAL OF DE SABLE. AND TOUSSAINT LOUVERTURE… MURALS THAT TEACHES ABOUT HAITI’S HISTORY

MERLYN JOSE: IT’S BEEN BEAUTIFUL TO EDUCATE ABOUT THE HAITIAN CULTURE THROUGH THE FOOD, THE MUSIC, AND AS YOU CAN SEE, THE ART.

MARIA: LIOR’S IS PART RESTAURANT, AND A DEFACTO HAITIAN MUSEUM. THERE ARE THE BEAUTIFUL COLORFUL PAINTINGS, THE DOWN BEAT OF HAITIAN MUSIC. AND VIDEOS PLAYING ON TVS SHOWING THE STORY OF A COUNTRY AND ITS HEROS.

MUSIC IN

MARIA: AN ISLAND WHERE ENSLAVED BLACK PEOPLE WERE THE FIRST TO REVOLT. AND WIN INDEPENDENCE. A PROUD PEOPLE, MERLYN SAYS:

MERLYN JOSE:  HAITIANS ARE VERY RESILIENT, AND I FEEL LIKE WHEREVER WE GO, WE TRY OUR BEST, AND WE THRIVE, AND WE ARE FIGHTERS.

MARIA: EVEN DURING THIS DEMORALIZING MOMENT. WHEN THEIR COMMUNITY IS ADAPTING TO THE LOSS OF TPS.

MERLYN JOSE: WE TRY TO KEEP SPIRITS HIGH AND GIVE THAT EXTRA COMPASSION AND EMPATHY, AND IF THERE’S ANY WAY WE CAN HELP WE TRY TO. BUT WHEN THEY COME TO LIOR’S, WE JUST WANT THEM TO FEEL A SAFE SPACE, HOME.

MARIA: WE’LL BE RIGHT BACK.

BREAK

MARIA: HEY, WE’RE BACK. LET’S WRAP UP OUR STORY. WE’VE BEEN FOCUSING ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF CHICAGO, BUT THE ENTIRE COUNTRY IS FEELING THE REPERCUSSIONS OF TPS ENDING. AND IT ISN’T JUST HAITIAN IMMIGRANTS. IT’S IMPACING EVERYDAY AMERICANS. AND THE U.S. ECONOMY. REBECCA SHI IS THE C-E-O OF THE AMERICAN BUSINESS IMMIGRATION COALITION. SHE SAYS THAT THE AMERICAN ECONOMY WILL SUFFER BECAUSE HAITIANS WHO HAD TPS CAN NO LONGER LEGALLY WORK. SHE SAYS THAT ABOUT 30 PERCENT OF HAITIANS WHO HAD TPS WORKED WITHIN THE HEALTHCARE SENIOR CARE SECTOR.

REBECCA SHI: AND SO WHEN OUR AMERICAN SENIORS WAKE UP ONE DAY AND THEIR TRUSTED CARETAKER SUDDENLY HAS DISAPPEARED AFTER THE TERMINATION OF TPS, THAT’S COMPLETELY DESTABILIZING, DISORIENTING, FOR AMERICAN SENIOR CITIZENS.

MARIA: ON TOP OF THAT, SHE SAYS IT’S BEEN DEVASATING TO EMPLOYERS WHO’VE HAD TO SHUTTER PARTS OF THEIR BUSINESS, OR SHIFT ADDITIONAL BURDENS TO OTHER EMPLOYEES. AND IT’S NOT JUST IN THE HEALTHCARE INDUSTRY. IT’S ACROSS SECTORS.

REBECCA SHI: FOR EXAMPLE, WE HAVE HOTELS AND SMALL BUSINESSES WHERE, HAITIANS, WHETHER IT’S IN KEY WEST, WHERE 20% OF THE POPULATION IS HAITIAN, OR IN CENTRAL FLORIDA, IN ORLANDO, WHERE HAITIANS WERE A CORE PIECE OF THE HOSPITALITY AND TOUR-TOURISM INDUSTRY.

MARIA: THESE KIND OF WORKPLACE CUTBACKS HAVE ALSO HAPPENED WITH OTHER IMMIGRANT GROUPS, LIKE VENEZUELANS, HONDURANS AND SYRIANS, WHO LOST THEIR TPS UNDER THE SECOND TRUMP ADMINISTRATION. REBECCA SAYS IT’S BAD ECONOMIC POLICY. ESPECIALLY WHEN THE MAJORITY OF AMERICANS ARE CONCERNED ABOUT AFFORDABILITY RIGHT NOW.

REBECCA SHI: AND SO WHEN WE REMOVE HIGHLY PRODUCTIVE, LAW-ABIDING, LONG-TERM IMMIGRANT WORKERS FROM THEIR JOBS IN CONSTRUCTION, IN HEALTHCARE, OR FOOD PROCESSING, THAT’S GONNA DIRECTLY HIT AMERICANS IN THE POCKETBOOKS.

MARIA: THE IMMIGRANT GROUPS WHO LOST TPS, SHE SAYS, SHOULD BE PUT ON A PATH TOWARDS LEGAL STATUS INSTEAD.

REBECCA SHI:  IT’S GONNA BE AN ECONOMIC SHOT IN THE ARM. I MEAN, JUST VARIOUS STUDIES FROM CONSERVATIVE TO MORE LIBERAL HAVE SHOWN ACROSS THE BOARD THAT IF YOU JUST LEGALIZE THE DREAMERS OR IMMIGRANTS ON TPS, THAT’S EASILY A $20 BILLION INJECTION TO THE ECONOMY, AND THAT NOT TO EVEN COUNT THE TAX CONTRIBUTION, THE CONSUMER INCOME AND PURCHASING POWER OF THIS POPULATION WHEN YOU’RE ABLE TO LEGALIZE THEM.

MARIA: A MODERN ECONOMY, REBECA SAYS SHOULD HAVE IMMIGRATION LAWS THAT HELP IT. BUT IT’S UP TO FEDERAL LAWMAKERS TO DO THAT. AND THE LAST TIME THERE WAS MAJOR REFORM WAS BACK IN 1986.

MUSIC

MARIA: BACK IN THE HAITIAN CHURCH, ON THE DEEP SOUTH SIDE. THE SUN IS SETTING. AND IT’S FLOWING THROUGH THE RED STAINED GLASS WINDOW PANES… THE ENTIRE PLACE IS NOW LIT UP IN RED WARM LIGHT.

PASTOR GILLES:  WE NEED TO LOBBY. WE NEED TO WORK TOGETHER.  

MARIA: PASTOR ALLENS GILLES SAYS, THAT WE MUST NOT FORGET THAT THE PEOPLE OF HAITI ARE POWERFUL… SOME MAY FEEL DEFEATED RIGHT NOW, BUT THEY’RE NOT UNDONE.

PASTOR GILLES:  WE NEED TO LOCK HANDS TOGETHER AND  IF WE RALLY TOGETHER WE CAN BECOME A STRONG FORCE TO COUNTERACT THIS POLICY. IF WE CAN RALLY EVERYBODY, WE, WE’RE GONNA SEND A STRONG MESSAGE. IN TWO YEARS, IT’S NOT GONNA BE THE SAME THING. AS A MATTER OF FACT, NOVEMBER IS AROUND THE CORNER. I TELL MY PEOPLE, THIS ALSO SHALL PASS.

MUSIC

CREDITS

MARIA: THIS EPISODE WAS PRODUCED BY REYNALDO LEAÑOS JR. AND IT WAS EDITED BY REBECA IBARRA. WITH FIELD PRODUCTION BY JULIETA MARTINELLI AND CINDY MARTIN. IT WAS MIXED BY STEPHANIE LEBOW AND JULIA CARUSO.

FACT-CHECKING BY ROXANA AGUIRRE.

FERNANDA ECHAVARRI IS OUR MANAGING EDITOR.

NANCY TRUJILLO IS OUR PRODUCTION MANAGER.

THE LATINO USA TEAM ALSO INCLUDES GLORIMAR MÁRQUEZ AND LEVI SHARPE.

PENILEY RAMÍREZ AND I ARE EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS.

I’M YOUR HOST, MARIA HINOJOSA.

REMEMBER, LATINO USA IS PART OF IHEART’S MI CULTURA PODCAST NETWORK.

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS AT IHEART ARE LEO GOMEZ AND ARLENE SANTANA.

JOIN US AGAIN ON OUR NEXT EPISODE.

IN THE MEANTIME, I’LL SEE YOU ON ALL OF OUR SOCIAL MEDIA, AND DON’T FORGET, DEAR LISTENER, TO JOIN FUTURO+.

YOU’LL GET TO LISTEN TO EVERYTHING AD-FREE AND GET REALLY COOL BONUS CONTENT.

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

DO IT NOW.

NO TE VAYAS. CIAO.

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