Venezuelan communities and activists say they are fiercely opposed to the executive order of U.S. President Donald Trump to end deportation protection for Venezuelans, saying it could separate families and upend lives built over decades in the United States.
In a dramatic policy shift, the Trump administration has terminated Temporary Protected Status for over 300,000 Venezuelan residents, exposing them to immediate deportation.
In Miami, Florida, the Venezuelans have fired back after the executive order.
"I want to send the message to the president. If the Venezuelan Americans voted for you in large numbers, they did so to remove criminals and to oust Nicolas Maduro from Miraflores. Venezuelan Americans did not vote for you to criminalize the majority of Venezuelans who are now left without status and for you to negotiate with Nicolas Maduro in Miraflores," said Carlos Pereira, a Venezuelan American politician and activist.
The decision to terminate the Temporary Protected Status known as TPS will leave thousands in their community undocumented and vulnerable to potential deportation.
Those under TPS from Venezuela who received the protections in 2023 will lose their temporary status 60 days after the government publishes the termination notice.
Mariana Molero and her husband have been in the U.S. for 20 years and she is facing the upcoming tough nut.
"I'm under TPS, but I also have a deportation order. So if the TPS is swiped out, I'm going to be ready for removal," she said.
She said she will fight on although she has got a deportation order as her husband lost the asylum.
"We keep fighting. We never stopped fighting for the Venezuelan freedom since we were in Venezuela. That makes us to run away. Back in the moment, it was really hard for the United States to acknowledge what was happening there. We couldn't prove the asylum and then we got the deportation order," said Molero.
The couple have two U.S. born children, an 18-year-old son and a 17-year-old daughter, Paola Fernandez.
"I feel sad for they [the parents] did everything for me, trying to make me have a better life," said Paola Fernandez.
The situation is further complicated by ongoing security concerns. Kristi Noem, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, claims Venezuela no longer meets conditions for TPS.
The Venezuelan community remains defiant, vowing to take their cases to court and explore every legal avenue to stay in the United States.
Venezuelans in U.S. oppose Trump's deportation order
Venezuelans in U.S. oppose Trump's deportation order
Venezuelans in U.S. oppose Trump's deportation order
