On Friday March 8th, 2024, A federal judge granted the Biden administration to continue work on a program that gives temporary legal status to hundreds of thousands of people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. The program is named ‘Humanitarian Parole’ and gives people the option to leave their troubled countries while also keeping the influx of migrants coming to the U.S. border in check.
The program lets migrants gain a two-year period of temporary permission to be in the United States, and work if they have a financial sponsor to back them. Most sponsorships are backed by a relative, individual, or place of worship. As of January 2024, almost 360,000 people have been approved for the program and have started the process. In April 2022, the Biden administration added Ukrainians fleeing from war to the program as well.
A JFS volunteer Nan Langowitz has personally sponsored two Venezuelan families through Temple Beth Elohim, a synagogue in Wellesley, Massachusetts. Ms. Langowitz’s synagogue has helped other families from Afghanistan and Syria as well. Nan was ecstatic about the ruling on Friday since she had submitted a declaration to the court in favor of the program. “I look forward to continuing to welcome other newcomers who can contribute their energy to our country” she said.
Thank you Nan Langowitz for your continued work and support in the community and beyond!
Click here to read more in the New York Times!