AfricaNews

The Biden Administration Grants Temporary Protected Status To Immigrants Who Fled War-Torn Cameroon

By Florence Mafomemeh

It was a long fight that ended in a victory for the short-term. The Biden Administration finally bowed to pressure from immigrant advocates and Democratic lawmakers on Friday and designated Cameroon for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months. This means that Cameroonian nationals living in the U.S. will be protected from deportation and can apply for work permits.

DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas

In a statement announcing the designation, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas cited the “years-old conflict between the Cameroonian government and armed separatist groups in the country’s Anglophone regions in the west,” as well as a surge in attacks by Boko Haram, an Islamist terrorist group in Africa. 

 “The United States recognizes the ongoing armed conflict in Cameroon, and we will provide temporary protection to those in need,” the DHS Secretary said in a statement. 

“Cameroonian nationals currently residing in the U.S. who cannot safely return due to the extreme violence perpetrated by government forces and armed separatists, and a rise in attacks led by Boko Haram, will be able to remain and work in the United States until conditions in their home country improve,” Mayorkas added.

The DHS said the conditions have fostered “extreme violence,” dealt a big blow to the African country’s infrastructure, fueled economic turmoil and food insecurity leading to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Cameroonians.

Destruction in Buea in the anglophone southwest region, Cameroon

Immigrant advocates said it was long overdue. “We have been fighting for a very long time to get T.P.S. for Cameroon,” said Guerline Jozef, co-founder of the Haitian Bridge Alliance and the Cameroonian Advocacy Network, who have been among the most vocal proponents of extending the protection.

“The way the U.S. was able to quickly provide protection for Ukrainians while denying protection for Black and brown vulnerable people is proof of a double standard,” Josef added.

The pressure to extend humanitarian protection to Cameroon heightened after the administration moved swiftly when war erupted in Ukraine to offer temporary protected status last month to people from that country who were already in the United States. 

That decision, which benefited some 30,000 Ukrainians, highlighted what critics said appeared to be a stark difference in the government’s treatment of Europeans and nationals of countries with majority Black or Hispanic populations.

TPS is based on three grounds: armed ongoing conflict, environmental disasters or “extraordinary and temporary conditions.” DHS cited the violence between government forces and separatists, as well as a rise in terror attacks by Islamic terror group Boko Haram.

Cameroon Soldiers

TPS authority allows the Department of Homeland Security to protect nationals of designated countries living in the U.S. from potential deportation if they are eligible, allows them to apply for work permits and gives them the freedom to travel. Cameroon is designated for an initial 18 months, but such designations are frequently extended.

CBS News  reports that the designation will allow Cameroonians who were in the United States as of April 14 to work and live legally in the U.S. for 18 months without fear of deportation. It includes those with visas that are set to expire. The designation does not, however, make them eligible for permanent residency or citizenship.

The New York Times reports that about 40,000 Cameroonian immigrants are expected to qualify for TPS. The status will not apply to Cameroonians who arrive in the U.S. after Friday’s announcement.

“This has been a long-fought battle,” said Guerline Jozef, executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance tells CBS News. “When it comes to TPS for Cameroon and Haiti, it was not just a gift. That was something we literally had to fight for, for a very long time,” Josef added.

Florence Mafomemeh Administrator
ABOUT FLORENCE MAFOMEMEH – FOUNDER, OWNER AND EDITOR OF BNN Florence Mafomemeh is the founder, owner and editor of Black Nation News – BNN Mafomemeh is a multimedia, backpack journalist and three-time B Free award-winning community video producer. She produces long and short form video and audio stories and writes news for broadcast and online media. She is very passionate about stories that impact the lives of ordinary people.  A native of Cameroon in West Africa, Mafomemeh wanted to become a journalist since the time she was in secondary school. As a news junkie, she realized that news hardly reach all ordinary people and their stories were not being told. She told herself that she would be a journalist so that she would bring the news to them and give them a voice by telling their stories to the world. Growing up, Mafomemeh watched, read and listened to a lot of national and international news and used much of her pocket allowance to buy international news magazines like Time and Complete Football International. In order to not miss the news, she slept with a small radio under her pillow and usually left a tape for news to be recorded for her when she was not at home. Currently living in New York City, Mafomemeh graduated from Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY in 2019 with a master’s degree in Journalism. While in school, she produced radio and TV News stories on deadline as a one-man band. She also reported news stories around New York City for the NYCITY News Service. Florence was also a news reporter and co-anchor for 219 West, a TV News Magazine that aired on CUNY-TV. As a field Community video Producer at Brooklyn Free Speech TV, Mafomemeh produces news stories that highlight issues in East New York and New York City. Her stories have had eight B Free Award nominations and three wins – The George Stoney B Free Awards for Social Impact and B-Informed, and The B Free People’s Choice Award. Florence has also freelanced for NYCPolitics.com and was a NYS Election Reporting Fellow with the Center for Community Media at CUNY. Mafomemeh also has a B.S. in Broadcast Journalism from CUNY- Brooklyn College, a B.A. in English, and an M.A. in the Literatures in English and Commonwealth nations from the University of Yaounde 1 in Cameroon. She specialized/majored in Caribbean Literature, focusing on the West Indies where she did her dissertation on the works of V.S. Naipaul. She also has certificates in journalism, community news production & reporting, proofreading and editing 101 from New York University-SCPS, People’s Production House and Teacher’s College, Columbia University. While at people’s Production House, Mafomemeh was radio reporter and co-host of Global Movements Urban Struggles-GMUS on WBAI Radio. GMUS was a show that tackled various issues facing various communities in New York City and around the United States. Having lived through many challenging experiences and seeing people going through them everyday, Mafomemeh is passionate about telling stories that matter. She is fulfilling her childhood dream of telling ordinary people’s stories that impact their lives and help to inspire others. I hope you have a great time here on BNN and find something to take with you even if it is just a good laugh! Please, do not forget to subscribe to/sign up for the newsletter with your e-mail address to receive notifications of new posts. Please, also show me some love by sharing the link to the site.   Also check out my personal blog at Talking Point With Florence where you can also see the “MORE YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT ME” blog post of November 2, 2013. 
×
Florence Mafomemeh Administrator
ABOUT FLORENCE MAFOMEMEH – FOUNDER, OWNER AND EDITOR OF BNN Florence Mafomemeh is the founder, owner and editor of Black Nation News – BNN Mafomemeh is a multimedia, backpack journalist and three-time B Free award-winning community video producer. She produces long and short form video and audio stories and writes news for broadcast and online media. She is very passionate about stories that impact the lives of ordinary people.  A native of Cameroon in West Africa, Mafomemeh wanted to become a journalist since the time she was in secondary school. As a news junkie, she realized that news hardly reach all ordinary people and their stories were not being told. She told herself that she would be a journalist so that she would bring the news to them and give them a voice by telling their stories to the world. Growing up, Mafomemeh watched, read and listened to a lot of national and international news and used much of her pocket allowance to buy international news magazines like Time and Complete Football International. In order to not miss the news, she slept with a small radio under her pillow and usually left a tape for news to be recorded for her when she was not at home. Currently living in New York City, Mafomemeh graduated from Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY in 2019 with a master’s degree in Journalism. While in school, she produced radio and TV News stories on deadline as a one-man band. She also reported news stories around New York City for the NYCITY News Service. Florence was also a news reporter and co-anchor for 219 West, a TV News Magazine that aired on CUNY-TV. As a field Community video Producer at Brooklyn Free Speech TV, Mafomemeh produces news stories that highlight issues in East New York and New York City. Her stories have had eight B Free Award nominations and three wins – The George Stoney B Free Awards for Social Impact and B-Informed, and The B Free People’s Choice Award. Florence has also freelanced for NYCPolitics.com and was a NYS Election Reporting Fellow with the Center for Community Media at CUNY. Mafomemeh also has a B.S. in Broadcast Journalism from CUNY- Brooklyn College, a B.A. in English, and an M.A. in the Literatures in English and Commonwealth nations from the University of Yaounde 1 in Cameroon. She specialized/majored in Caribbean Literature, focusing on the West Indies where she did her dissertation on the works of V.S. Naipaul. She also has certificates in journalism, community news production & reporting, proofreading and editing 101 from New York University-SCPS, People’s Production House and Teacher’s College, Columbia University. While at people’s Production House, Mafomemeh was radio reporter and co-host of Global Movements Urban Struggles-GMUS on WBAI Radio. GMUS was a show that tackled various issues facing various communities in New York City and around the United States. Having lived through many challenging experiences and seeing people going through them everyday, Mafomemeh is passionate about telling stories that matter. She is fulfilling her childhood dream of telling ordinary people’s stories that impact their lives and help to inspire others. I hope you have a great time here on BNN and find something to take with you even if it is just a good laugh! Please, do not forget to subscribe to/sign up for the newsletter with your e-mail address to receive notifications of new posts. Please, also show me some love by sharing the link to the site.   Also check out my personal blog at Talking Point With Florence where you can also see the “MORE YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT ME” blog post of November 2, 2013.