Reps. Beatty, Cherfilus-McCormick, and Carey Lead Letter Requesting the Biden Administration to Grant TPS Status to Mauritanians

Washington, DC- Today, Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-FL) led a bipartisan letter with Reps. Joyce Beatty (D-OH) and Mike Carey (R-OH) to President Biden, Vice President Harris, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas, and Director of Citizenship and Immigration Services Jaddou that urges the designation of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Mauritania.

"We write to you with a request for an immediate 18-month designation of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) or Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Mauritania and a halt to ongoing deportations due to extraordinary conditions including slavery, forced statelessness, land grabbing, ongoing racial and ethnic discrimination, and other human rights abuses. Human rights experts have described Mauritania as an apartheid-like state where Black individuals suffer from systemic oppression and marginalization at every level of society. If deported back to these conditions, Black Mauritanians would likely face violence and potentially death," the Members stated.

Congresswoman Cherfilus-McCormick has consistently urged the Biden Administration to use TPS redesignation in supporting migrants fleeing humanitarian crises. In October 2023, Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick led a letterwith Reps. Joaquin Castro (D-TX), María Elvira Salazar (R-FL), and Maxwell Frost (D-FL) in support of redesignating TPS for Nicaragua. In December 2022, she applaudedthe extension and redesignation of TPS for Haiti.

"The U.S. must be a country that stands against racial discrimination and enslavement. We respectfully request that you designate Mauritania for TPS in order to save lives, keep families together, and promote a humane and effective immigration system. Thank you in advance for your attention to this critical matter. We appreciate your efforts and are willing and able to provide any support or assistance you may need," the Members concluded.

Additional signatories of the letter include Reps. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC-At Large), Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), Barbara Lee (D-CA), André Carson (D-IN), Juan Vargas (D-CA), James McGovern (D-MA), Greg Landsman (D-OH), Dwight Evans (D-PA), Hank Johnson (D-GA), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Frederica Wilson (D-FL), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Alma Adams (D-NC), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ), Yvette Clarke (D-NY), Sylvia Garcia (D-TX), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Joaquin Castro (D-TX), Judy Chu (D-CA), Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Jonathan Jackson (D-IL), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Greg Casar (D-TX), Tony Cárdenas (D-CA), and Maxwell Frost (D-FL).

Read the full letter HERE.

For inquiries, please contact Todd Valentine at [email protected].

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