Topline
The Biden administration Wednesday granted temporary legal status to Venezuelan migrants who have been in the country since July, meaning they can work and live legally in the U.S., after pressure from local Democrat leaders and activists calling on the White House to support asylum seekers.
Venezulean migrants wait in a line to get paper work to be admitted to shelters at a migrant … [+]
Key Facts
All Venezeualan migrants who crossed the southern border before July 31 are eligible for temporary protected status for a period of 18 months, the Department of Homeland Security announced.
Nearly 472,000 Venezualans will be eligible for the temporary status, the DHS added.
The temporary status will allow beneficiaries to work legally.
The DHS said the move was a result of “extraordinary and temporary conditions in Venezuela that prevent individuals from safely returning.”
It follows weeks of pressure from state and city level Democratic officials who were struggling to support a large number of migrants in shelters and urged the White House to grant them the ability to seek work.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams has been among the most vocal in demanding the temporary status as the city is struggling to house around 60,000 migrants.
Big Number
242,700. That is the approximate number of Venezuelan migrants who are already under temporary protected status, the DHS said. The Biden administration first extended the temporary status to Venezuelan nationals who arrived in the U.S. before March 2021.
Crucial Quote
Praising the move, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said: “More than 116,000 asylum seekers have come to New York City since last spring in search of the American Dream. Our administration and our partners across the city have led the calls to ‘Let Them Work,’ so I want to thank President Biden for…taking this important step.”
Key Background
The Biden administration also announced plans to deploy around 800 active duty troops from the Pentagon to support Customs and Border Protection along the country’s Southwestern border. This is in addition to the 2,400 National Guard personnel who have already been deployed for the same task. Homeland Security officials also said they are taking additional steps to rapidly deport families who cross the border.
