OKC Archbishop Coakley urges Trump to halt deportations to Haiti

Oklahoma City Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, is urging President Donald Trump to halt deportations to Haiti, where violence and instability has increased.

Coakley recently wrote to Trump to point out the current situation facing many Haitian families, both in the United States and in Haiti.

In his letter, Coakley urged the president to provide deferred enforced departure for Haitians peacefully residing in the United States.

“I write with deep pastoral concern in relation to the growing number of Haitians being forcibly repatriated to Haiti from the United States and to humbly request your assistance,” Coakley wrote.

His letter comes in the aftermath of the Trump administration’s decision to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians in August, after a ruling in the administration’s favor by the U.S. Supreme Court. USA Today reported that more than 330,000 Haitians lived in the U.S. under TPS, at the time that the nation’s high court issued the ruling.

Coakley told the president that at least 47 people were brutally murdered, more than 20 injured, and more than 50 kidnapped in a recent “unconscionable act of violence” perpetrated by gang members in Port-au-Prince. Coakley said the victims were displaced families — young children among them — taking shelter at a church.

“Together with our Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, my brother bishops and I express our spiritual closeness with the victims and pray for the swift release of all hostages,” Coakley said.

“As citizens of this great country, we have been entrusted with a tremendous moral responsibility, and this is true most of all for you as our head of state, Mr. President. To this end, I respectfully ask: What good is the immense wealth, prosperity, and influence with which we have been blessed as a nation if not used in service of our humanity?”

The archbishop said he recognized the importance of regulating immigration and enforcing federal immigration law, as he expressed to Trump when they met earlier this year. He also acknowledged that the troubles in Haiti preceded Trump’s time in office.

“At the same time, I know you understand the essential role the United States plays in promoting the inherent value of human life,” Coakley wrote.

“In this 250th year of American independence, we are reminded of our country’s humble, yet idealistic and inspired, beginnings. Among those ideals has always been, no matter where we are born, the belief that people are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights. I urge you today, Mr. President, to uphold these fundamental rights, with the right to life being chief among them.”

The archbishop said Trump’s current approach will only contribute to Haiti’s “already deepening crisis, undermining your own strategic objectives for the Western Hemisphere.”

“Please exercise your authority under the U.S. Constitution to provide deferred enforced departure for Haitians peacefully residing in the United States,” Coakley said.

As of press time Friday, Sept. 11, Trump hadn’t responded.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC Archbishop Coakley urges Trump to halt deportations to Haiti