Washington– president Donald Trump He said Friday evening that he would “immediately” end temporary legal protections for Somali immigrants living in Minnesota, further targeting a program seeking to limit deportations that his administration has already repeatedly sought to weaken.
Minnesota has the nation The largest Somali community. Many fled the long civil war in their East African country and were attracted to the country’s welcoming social programs.
But the number of immigrants who would be affected by Trump’s announcement that he wants to end temporary protected status may be very small. A report submitted to Congress in August estimated that the number of Somalis covered by the program was only 705 across the country.
Congress created the grant program Temporary protection status in 1990. It was intended to prevent the deportation of people to countries experiencing natural disasters, civil wars, or other dangerous conditions.
The designation may be granted by the Secretary of Homeland Security and is awarded in 18-month increments.
The president announced his decision on his social media site, noting that Minnesota was a “hub of fraudulent money laundering activity.”
“Somali gangs are terrorizing the people of that great country, and billions of dollars are missing. Send them back where they came from,” Trump wrote. “I finish!”
Trump promised during his election campaign to regain the White House last year that his administration would deport millions of people. As part of a broader push to embrace tough immigration policies, the Trump administration has moved to… Withdrawal of various means of protection Which allowed immigrants to remain in the United States and work legally.
This included ending the temporary protected status of 600,000 Venezuelans and 500,000 Haitians Protection granted Under President Joe Biden. The Trump administration has also sought to limit protections previously offered to migrants from Cuba and Syria, among other countries.