Massachusetts

‘All My Life Is Here': Immigrants at a Loss After Revocation of TPS Status

The decision to end Temporary Protected Status for thousands of Salvadoran immigrants in the U.S. hits home in Massachusetts, where it is estimated 6,000 recipients will be impacted.

"What am I to do in my country? There is nothing there. All my life is here," said Santos Landaverde.

Since the mid-90s, Landaverde and her husband have lived in the U.S. In 2001, they gained TPS due to earthquakes that damaged their home country of El Salvador. In the years that followed, they bought a home and raised four daughters, all of whom were born in the U.S.

"It's very sad for us. We have daughters here. I have a job," said Victor Landaverde.

On Monday, they learned the Trump administration officially terminated their program, requiring them to leave by September 2019. Unless they can find another way to remain, the Landaverdes plan to keep their eldest daughters here to finish high school and college. The youngest would most likely return to El Salvador with them.

"I was shocked. Going to El Salvador, I can't even think about it. I've never been in that country," said Jacqueline Landaverde, a junior in high school.

It is a predicament approximately 200,000 people are dealing with across the country. While the Trump administration has said the country has improved enough since the earthquakes, many TPS recipients are more concerned about the gangs violence in the country.

"There's been no serious change in El Salvador. It is one of the murder capitals of the world. The gangs run rampant in that country. This is a devastating blow," said attorney Susan Church.

Since the announcement, Church has been inundated with calls from immigrants and the businesses who employ them, all wondering what to do next.

"They've done everything they can to maintain their status, and now it's just taken away from them," Church said. "It's heartbreaking."

In 2016, the Obama administration extended protections for Salvadorans due to the lingering impacts of the 2001 earthquakes. The current administration has said TPS recipients can use the next several months to try to find another legal way to remain here.

"I'm very confused. It's sad," said Santos Landaverde.

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