Trump administration sued over ending protection for Somalis

Washington’s plan to force immigrants back to the conflict-torn country is an act of “cruelty,” the executive director of African Communities Together has said

Somali immigrants and advocacy groups have filed a lawsuit in a federal court to block the administration of US President Donald Trump from ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for people from the East African country.

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on January 13 that it will terminate TPS for immigrants from Somalia, saying conditions in the country have improved enough that it no longer meets the policy’s requirements. The decision is due to take effect on March 17 and is expected to affect about 1,082 Somalis who currently have the status, with another 1,383 applicants also reportedly affected.

In the complaint filed in a Boston court on Monday, four Somali plaintiffs along with African Communities Together (ACT) and the Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans (PANA) argue that Somalia remains unsafe, contrary to the DHS claim that conditions have improved.

READ MORE: US ends temporary protected status for Somalis

The plaintiffs described the decision by Homeland Security as “infected by procedural deficiencies and driven by a preordained and discriminatory agenda.” They cited recent remarks by President Trump describing Somalis in Minnesota as “garbage” and “low IQ” people who “contribute nothing” to the US.

“The harm from this termination is not abstract. Somali families in our communities fear their loved ones will be picked up and disappeared to a third country like Uganda, are skipping medical appointments, and are afraid to leave their homes,” PANA Executive Director Ramla Sahid said in a statement.

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Somalia has been designated for TPS since September 16, 1991, due to the ongoing armed conflict involving the Al-Qaeda-linked militant group Al-Shabaab. TPS allows eligible foreign nationals to temporarily live and work in the US if they are unable to return safely to their home countries.

The lawsuit comes amid a broader legal fight over the Trump administration’s effort to phase out TPS for most designated countries. Washington moved to end protections for South Sudanese nationals on January 5, and for Ethiopians on February 13. It is also seeking Supreme Court backing to end protections for Haitians and Syrians.

“Forcing them [Somalis] back now, to a country where armed conflict and famine are ongoing realities, is not a policy decision – it is a cruelty,” Amaha Kassa, executive director of ACT, stated.