Sudden Reversal of U.S. Policy Means Thousands of Haitians Stuck in Limbo in Tijuana Kim Brunhuber - CBC in Mexico
go to original December 13, 2016

While thousands of Haitians are stuck in limbo at the U.S.-Mexico border, this Tijuana lunch spot is offering a comforting taste of home. (Fusion)

Approximately 50,000 Haitians migrated to Brazil after the 2010 earthquake devastated parts of their country. Most of them went to work on Olympic construction. When the Olympics ended, so did the work. But the U.S. offered them a lifeline of sorts, announcing that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement would stop deporting Haitians who were in the country illegally.

Close to 5,000 of them managed to make it all the way to Tijuana, at the Mexico-U.S. border. But then in September the U.S. reversed the policy and said it would resume "removing" Haitian nationals, claiming that conditions in Haiti had improved. Those who feared persecution back home could apply for asylum.

After making the long, difficult trek, Haitians now showing up at the border without proper documentation could be detained or deported. Many liken it to being invited to someone's home, then getting arrested as soon as you enter. With Donald Trump in the White House, getting into the U.S. — legally or illegally — will probably be even tougher, says René Jean-Baptiste.

"The messages [my friends] send on social media saying that they're being deported ... I read them," he says. "Many of us have spent so much money to get to this point, the money is gone. Life isn't finished but hope is finished."

Now, on almost every block in downtown Tijuana you can see Haitians, standing around or walking the streets with their belongings, sometimes with their children. In limbo.

Read the rest at CBC in Mexico

Related: Photos: Life for Haitian Migrants at the U.S.-Mexico Border (AZCentral)

Related: Mexico Deported More Than Twice the Number of Hondurans as the U.S. Did in 2016 (The Daily Caller)

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