ImmigrationEligible Haitian immigrants to be allowed to wait in U.S. for green card processing

Haitian immigrants eligible for green cards will soon be able to wait through the process in the United States, according to a new family reunification program proposed by President Barack Obama.

As theMiami Herald reports, starting next year, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will begin the implementation of the Haitian Family Reunification Parole (HFRP) program, aiming to accelerate the green card process for those living in Haiti who have already been approved for an immigration visa due to familial connections. Many of these people are currently homeless or poverty stricken in Haiti, due in no small part to the destruction of the 2010 earthquake which struck near the capitol of Port-au-Prince.

“We are grateful that the administration has stepped up to the plate and done the right thing,” said Cheryl Little, the executive director of Americans for Immigrant Justice, “I was hoping it wouldn’t be as restrictive as it seems to be in terms of which Haitians who are eligible to join their loved ones here, but obviously it’s going to benefit a number of Haitian families who have been waiting for this since the earthquake.”

The quake killed more than 300,000 people due to the poor infrastructure in Haiti, and left 1.5 million people homeless. Obama’s executive actions come in the wake of the 5-year anniversary of the disaster, the effects of which are still felt and seen throughout Haiti.

Much of the new legislation follows a long immigration battle and gridlock between the Democratic Senate and the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. The Senate had passed a bill which would further provide legal status for many illegal immigrants, but it was not brought to a vote in the House.

“Comprehensive immigration reform would have solved this problem not just for Haitians but for all other nationalities who are waiting in the immigrant visa backlog because it would have substantially increased the numbers of family immigrant visas available and people would have been able to come in as permanent residents,” said a U.S. government official who wished to remain anonymous, “As it hasn’t happened, we are proceeding with this program.”

Officials also point out that the Haitian reunification program is modeled on a similar one already in operation for Cubans, in which the U.S. government grants roughly 20,000 visas a year. Haitian visas are expected to be much lower, closer to 5,000 in the first annual wave.

“It’s a very limited program,” said Steve Forester, a Haitian immigration activist, “We don’t know how many people it will cover, and a lot will depend on how quickly they implement it.”

The Haitian program has seen a lot of unilateral support from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers, the South Florida congressional delegation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and others.

“The rebuilding and development of a safe and economically strong Haiti is a priority for the United States,” said Alejandro Mayorkas, a deputy secretary at DHS. “The parole program also supports broader U.S. goals for Haiti’s reconstruction and development by providing the opportunity for certain eligible Haitians to safely and legally immigrate sooner to the United States.”