Nearly a quarter of all U.S. households live paycheck to paycheck: they spend over 95% of their income on necessities. Meanwhile, 67% of Americans report feeling like they live paycheck to paycheck. While they may not meet the formal definition, they are on extremely tight budgets.
So what would happen if one day, without warning, any average person in the United States was not legally allowed to work?
Over a million people have reckoned with this reality under the second Trump administration. Loss of income is just one of many extreme stressors when someone’s Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is revoked.
In the past year, the Trump Administration has terminated TPS for over a million people. In their haste, they’ve violated multiple laws, repeatedly landing themselves in judicial battles. The Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the administration’s ability to enact these egregious terminations.
But what really happens to you when your TPS is revoked?
Immediately, your legal status reverts to your previous standing before TPS.
For most people, this means suddenly being undocumented in the eyes of the state. In many recent cases, the Trump Administration has violated requirements to provide reasonable termination notice to TPS holders. Some impacted groups had every reason to believe their legal protection would continue for a significant period of time, when instead the rug was suddenly pulled out from under them.
You lose the right to work.
In the likely case that a former TPS holder is now legally undocumented, they lose the right to work. Given the already precarious economic position of most U.S. households, job loss generally leads to immediate financial insecurity. Folks facing the loss of TPS need funds to seek legal counsel and maintain their agency as they decide how to move forward. Loss of income is a stressor under any circumstances, but it’s an unbelievable setback for people in migration.
You risk deportation.
On Monday, a TPS holder could be working a full-time job, taking care of their family, and feel relatively secure living their day-to-day life. Later that same week, under TPS revocation, that same person could be facing deportation to a country that’s actively in crisis. If they have children, former TPS holders immediately face custody decisions. Who do they want to care for their kids if they’re deported? Do they instead choose voluntarily deportation to try and keep their family together? Do they have the necessary financial resources to get legal counsel in either case or fund an international move?
This is just a small window into the challenges that TPS holders face when navigating status termination. While the Trump administration’s attacks on TPS add another layer of terror to a horrifying migration justice landscape, we can work toward a different future.
Since many the Trump administration’s TPS terminations continue to be challenged in court, we have the chance to advocate for Temporary Protected Status. UUSC organizes our members to take action through our Resistance Network. We also collaborate with the UU Solidarity Initiative. Sign up to be notified of the latest opportunities to speak out against the termination of TPS.
Also make sure to keep in touch with the latest from our partners who are advocating for Congressional action: National TPS Alliance, UndocuBlack, and Haitian Bridge Alliance.
At UUSC, we believe that migration is a human right. All people deserve to choose where they live and act in defense of their safety and dignity. Together, we can work to defend our neighbors in migration and co-create a more just future.
