A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nearly 350,000 Venezuelans, calling the move “baseless” and accusing it of “smacking of racism.”
On Monday, U.S. District Judge Edward Chen issued a ruling that halted a directive from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, which would have stripped legal protections that currently allow Venezuelans to live and work in the U.S. The decision came after a lawsuit filed by the National TPS Alliance, an organization that represents thousands of TPS holders.
Judge Chen criticized the administration’s rationale for ending TPS, particularly its claims that Venezuelan migrants were linked to the Tren de Aragua gang. He stated that such generalizations about the Venezuelan TPS population were unfounded and rooted in harmful stereotypes. “Generalization of criminality to the Venezuelan TPS population as a whole is baseless and smacks of racism predicated on generalized false stereotypes,” Chen wrote in his ruling.
The judge also pointed out that TPS holders contribute significantly to the U.S. economy, noting that they “work, spend money, and pay taxes.” He further dismissed the administration’s claim that Venezuelan migrants impose financial burdens on local communities, calling it “entirely lacking in evidentiary support.”
Chen’s ruling effectively preserves the protections extended under the Biden administration, which granted TPS to Venezuelans in response to the ongoing political instability and economic crisis in Venezuela under President Nicolás Maduro.
The Trump administration now has one week to appeal the decision. Meanwhile, a separate legal challenge is ongoing concerning similar policies that affect 500,000 Haitians.
In addition to this case, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg is reviewing whether the Trump administration violated a previous court order by invoking the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelans accused of gang affiliation.
Early last month, on March 15, a federal judge blocked a deportation flight to El Salvador, ordering it to turn back before reaching its destination.
Despite the legal setbacks, the administration deported 17 alleged gang members to El Salvador over the weekend under the Immigration and Nationality Act, bypassing the contested Alien Enemies Act.
