Tag: Liberian immigrants

Phillips Applauds New Permanent Resident Status for Liberian Minnesotans

President Trump signs defense bill which includes a provision to provide pathway to citizenship for Liberians on DED

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Rep. Dean Phillips (MN-03) is celebrating with the members of the Liberian community in Minnesota after President Trump signed the National Defense Department Authorization (NDAA). The defense agreement provides Liberians on Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) with a pathway to citizenship for the first time – the culmination of a year-long effort by Phillips and a core group other lawmakers. Phillips has been working with the Liberian community, his colleagues in Congress and President Trump to first delay the expiration of DED in March and has advocated for a bipartisan permanent fix for the last year.

The yearly defense bill contained the final provision, which was based on legislative efforts led by Phillips, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, and Rep. David Cicilline, Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed and Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith.

“Our nation is the land of promise and opportunity,” said Phillips. “If you are here legally, play by the rules, and contribute to your community, you should have nothing to fear – and our Liberian neighbors, coworkers, friends, and family are finally breathing a sigh of relief. Over many months, I have worked together with Minnesota’s extraordinary Liberian community to elevate their stories and legislate a permanent fix for DED. I’m overjoyed and celebrating alongside them today and am thankful to my colleagues Rep. David Cicilline, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, Sen. Tina Smith, and Sen. Jack Reed for finding a way to get this done.” Continue reading “Phillips Applauds New Permanent Resident Status for Liberian Minnesotans”

Rep. Phillips Statement on President Trump Signing a One Year Extension of DED

Today, Rep. Dean Phillips (MN-03) issued the following statement on President Trump signing a one year extension of Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) status for Liberians.

“This is excellent news and I am thrilled for our Liberian community. They are our family and deserve admiration for their relentless fight for this DED extension. The White House has been responsive and helpful throughout this process and I am grateful to President Trump for hearing our voices and taking action.

I look forward to working with my colleagues on legislative solutions over the next year to prevent the need for more extensions.”

Phillips, Fitzpatrick Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Protect the Liberian Community from Expiration and Deportation

The Protect Our Liberian Community Act moves Liberians from Deferred Enforced Departure (DED), which is set to expire on March 31st, to Temporary Protected Status (TPS)

WASHINGTON, DC – With 4 days left until Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) status expires for the Liberian community,Rep. Dean Phillips (MN-03) and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-1) today introduced the bipartisan Protect Our Liberian Community Act.

The bipartisan bill would move Liberian DED holders to Temporary Protected Status (TPS), providing legal status to the community for three years. DED is set to expire on March 31st, which would subject thousands of Liberian workers and taxpayers to deportation. Liberians on DED have no pathway to citizenship.

Liberians on DED have lived in the United States for 16 years or more and have demonstrated that they are law-abiding and taxpaying. Many own homes and businesses, and are hardworking employees for health care employers that are already facing critical workforce shortages. Continue reading “Phillips, Fitzpatrick Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Protect the Liberian Community from Expiration and Deportation”

With Time Running Out, Rep. Phillips Presses for Legislative Fix tp DED on the House Floor

Phillips: “There’s an empty net and all we have to do is tap in the puck.”

WASHINGTON, DC – With 4 days left until Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) status expires for the Liberian community, Rep. Dean Phillips pressed the House to take legislative action to move DED holders to Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for three years and give Congress time to pass a more comprehensive solution.

Click here to view Rep. Phillips’s remarks

Below are Rep. Phillips’ remarks as prepared:

Madam Speaker, the clock is ticking and thousands of Minnesotans are running out of time.

Continue reading “With Time Running Out, Rep. Phillips Presses for Legislative Fix tp DED on the House Floor”

Rep. Phillips Delivers Letters from Two Thirds of the Minnesota Senate to Pres. Trump Asking for DED Extension

Bipartisan group of Minnesota lawmakers appeals to Congress and the White House as deadline closes in

WASHINGTON, DC – Rep. Dean Phillips (MN-03) delivered 48 letters to the White House from a bipartisan group of Minnesota senators today. The letters urge the President and Congress to extend the Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) program for Liberian refugees before it expires on March 31, subjecting thousands to deportation. Fifty-five members of the Minnesota House sent a similar letter to the White House and Congress last week.

Minnesota is home to one of the largest Liberian populations in the country. Their integral contributions to the community and unique legal status prompted 19 Republican State Senators, including Majority Leader Paul Gazelka, and 29 Democratic State Senators to join 55 State Representatives to call for their protection.

“Our Liberian neighbors, family members and coworkers have played by the rules, paid taxes and contributed to our community,” said Rep. Phillips. “That is why Republicans and Democrats should stand together in support of DED holders. I thank Minnesota Senators on both sides of the aisle for placing the best interests of our people and economy over politics and I urge my colleagues in Washington to do the same.”

Liberians have lived in Minnesota under special legal status for decades after fleeing bloody civil wars and the devastating Ebola virus. Republican and Democratic presidential administrations from Clinton to Trump have renewed DED every two years since it was introduced in 1999. Under current law, there is no pathway to citizenship for Liberians on DED.

In the north metro, Liberians make up a significant percentage of the health care workforce – particularly in caretaking roles where employers are already struggling with critical workforce shortages.

“This isn’t a partisan issue,” said Minnesota Senator John Hoffman. “It is bipartisan because this is a people issue. DED has protected Liberians for over a decade and during that time they became our friends and family. We stand together as we reach out to our President to not only extend DED to keep our communities whole, but to follow with a path to permanent citizenship so that those who became our family stay close to us always.”

“Our Liberian neighbors are Minnesotans — they contribute to our economy, our culture and our communities,” said Minnesota Speaker of the House Melissa Hortman. “Ending the protections from DED will have detrimental effects on Minnesota, and most importantly, will have life-changing and even tragic life-or-death consequences for Liberians living in Minnesota.”

Rep. Phillips has been a vocal advocate for Liberian refugees in Washington, introducing the bipartisan Protect our Liberian Community Act today that would prevent thousands of Liberians living legally in the U.S. from becoming undocumented and subject to deportation on March 31, and co-sponsoring the Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act (H.R.1169) to provide a pathway to citizenship for those same individuals.

With Trump deadline on Liberian immigrants’ status looming, February declared ‘DED Awareness Month’

It’s been almost one year since President Donald Trump ordered an end to special legal status for certain immigrants from Liberia, and with that March 31 deadline fast approaching, the Minnesota Liberian community — the largest Liberian population outside of war-torn and poverty-stricken Liberia — is sounding the alarm.

“All hands on deck,” Liberian community leader Erasmus Williams implored a crowd of about 50 Friday evening at the Liberian Community Center in Brooklyn Park, where state Sen. John Hoffman, D-Champlin, and others spoke about the urgency of the situation. Trump has threatened to end the program, called Deferred Enforced Departure (DED), which has allowed natives of the West African country to live and work in the United States since 2007. If the edict goes through, it could mean the deportation of hundreds if not thousands of the estimated 30,000 Liberians living in Minnesota.

“Today, we are here to witness history,” Williams told the gathered dreamers and would-be new Americans. “A history that we look forward to being duplicated by all states throughout the United States. And we know if this duplication takes place, definitely our result will come sooner than later. Last night, we had a very good teleconference with member chapters across the United States. So everything you see going on in Minnesota now, pretty soon you will hear people in Iowa having a meeting, people in Philadelphia having a meeting, seeing what they can do. With just a little faith, we can get it done.”

View the complete February 4 article by Jim Walsh on the MinnPost website here.