Protections for Haitians escaping violence is encouraging, more can be done | Opinion

For months now, Haitians have tried day after day to survive unmitigated violence amid a political crisis.

Thousands were killed in gang-related attacks during just the first quarter of this year. Women and girls are being forced from vehicles at gunpoint and subjected to sexual violence. More than 360,000 people are experiencing homelessness after gangs invaded their communities, and millions may not be able to feed themselves or their loved ones sufficiently.

Amid so much tragedy, the United States has the capacity to help save Haitian lives. The federal government can protect civilians through small tweaks to our existing immigration programs — in ways that not only welcome people who are suffering but also strengthen our own country.

The Biden administration made an encouraging announcement on June 28 to protect Haitians already here and contributing by expanding temporary permission for people from Haiti to live and work legally in the U.S.

This isn’t just good humanitarian policy, it’s also good economics: Haitian immigrants are disproportionately represented in service occupations, where employers need more available workers to thrive. In contrast, if the administration had chosen not to reauthorize temporary protections for Haitians already stateside, businesses struggling with chronic labor shortages might have suddenly lost sizable swaths of their legal workforce.

However, there’s more that President Biden can do. First, in line with his administration’s recognition that Haitians cannot return home safely right now, officials should pause deportations to Haiti immediately. The State Department has warned Americans not to travel to this nation because of potentially life-threatening hazards, while the U.S. government has withdrawn many of its own personnel as the capital city, Port-au-Prince, has fallen under roughly 80% gang control.

Yet, as recently as May 16, the Department of Homeland Security sent a deportation flight to Haiti. Such repatriations must stop, at least until the U.S. can ensure that those returned will be safe and able to rebuild their lives.

Meanwhile, relatively small policy changes could offer peace of mind to more than a million Haitians and Haitian Americans in the U.S., many of whom are grappling with fear for their loved ones who remain at risk in Haiti. The U.S. government should prioritize creative solutions that allow U.S. families to bring people here, into communities where they have financial and emotional support systems.

The Biden administration has spearheaded or fortified some of these kinds of solutions already, updating an existing family reunification program and debuting innovative private sponsorship processes for Haiti as well as three other countries. Those are strong starts, but Haiti’s crisis demands more.

One potential improvement: Raise or remove the cap on private sponsorship processes. That way, Americans who want to sponsor friends and family stateside could do so in a timely manner, unimpeded by long backlogs.

The federal government also could make it easier for law-abiding Haitians to reach the U.S., especially if they already have a job offer in essential industries such as construction, hospitality, or agriculture. The Biden administration has successfully used virtual processing for many Haitians pursuing existing pathways in recent years. Expanding this more efficient processing to potential Haitian workers would help to meet Americans’ labor needs and buy time for Haiti’s new prime minister and transitional council to restore stability.

And let’s protect Haitian children, as we are already doing for children from other countries. Many kids in Haiti are suffering school closures, malnutrition, sexual violence, injuries and even death.

Changes are needed to encourage legal migration for people who, in desperation, might otherwise turn to unauthorized routes. We can show we’re serious about a more humane, orderly immigration system through our response to Haiti’s humanitarian crisis.

Our country has prided itself as a beacon of hope built by generations of immigrants, many of whom came here in despair. We can honor our American values by welcoming those in need.