Salisbury, Md. (AP) – The Word of Life Center, a longstanding church for the Haitian community, is enduring tough times in Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Scheduled events like a bridal shower and yard sale barbecue were canceled, and English classes stopped. Senior Pastor Roosevelt Toussaint noted a sharp drop in attendance at Sunday services. Over half of the usual 500-person congregation missed his sermon titled “What to do in a time of crisis.”
The absence of churchgoers stems from fear of arrest and deportation following the Trump administration’s decision to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for over a million people from multiple nations. Among them are about 350,000 Haitians living legally in the U.S. for years. In Salisbury, with 33,000 residents, Haitians make up about 10% of the population, mostly working in farming, caregiving, and poultry plants.
The termination of TPS presents a harsh choice: stay in the U.S. working covertly, fearful of deportation, or return to Haiti, where gang violence and poverty pose extreme risks. Toussaint, pastor since 1995, appealed to President Trump for compassion, emphasizing Haitians’ contributions to the U.S. economy. “There’s no security at home. If you really send us over there, you send us to die,” he stated.
At the first service post-TPS expiration, Toussaint comforted congregants in Haitian Creole, urging perseverance and faith. “Do not be afraid,” he reassured. U.S. citizens in solidarity attended, showing support. Attendee Marjorie Estimé criticized the administration’s strict immigration policies, affecting both legal and illegal immigrants. Advocates for Haitian communities report ICE employs tactics such as requiring ankle monitors and restricted travel.
Confusion mounted when district court rulings challenged the TPS termination, and on June 25, the Supreme Court allowed its end. By July 27, work permits were unrenewed, inciting fears about job loss and deportation. Samson Orneus, affiliated with the Haitian church, likened the situation to a brutal hurricane.
Reports of arrests at gas stations and supermarkets spread, with Marie D. Fouché’s Safe Harbor Circles documenting multiple arrests of TPS holders. “They went to shop, cook for their family, but got arrested,” she lamented. DHS declined to discuss operations but affirmed TPS is temporary, unlawful under Congress’s intent of use.
Haitians received TPS following the 2010 earthquake, which was extended until improvements allowed for its proposed end. However, the conditions in Haiti remain dire with 1.5 million displaced from violence, requiring humanitarian aid. Leila Borrero Krouse, an immigration advocate, expressed outrage at inhumane treatments of immigrants who occupy unpopular jobs.
The TPS termination has upended lives, including Patricia Grace Louis-Jacques, whose friend requested her to care for her child if detained. The anxiety faced by many, including a Honduran woman affected by prior TPS expiration, is profound. She lives in constant fear of detention, limiting her activities, paralleling similar worries others face due to immigration enforcement.
Such personal narratives underline the disturbing impact on those who sought safety and work in the U.S., now facing an uncertain future.