The federal government is ending temporary protected status for Somalis in the United States, potentially affecting hundreds of people across the U.S. and Minnesota.
The Department of Homeland Security announced the move on Jan. 13, giving Somali people with a protected status until March 17 to leave the United States. Tuesday’s announcement follows weeks of escalating Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions affecting migrants and citizens in Minnesota — the state which hosts the nation’s largest Somali population.
“Our message is clear. Go back to your own country, or we’ll send you back ourselves,” DHS said in a social media post. “[Gov. Tim Walz] has refused to cooperate with ICE and released nearly 470 criminal illegal aliens back onto the streets of Minnesota to terrorize Americans. It is common sense. Criminal illegal aliens should not be released back onto our streets.”
“Temporary means temporary. Country conditions in Somalia have improved to the point that it no longer meets the law’s requirement for Temporary Protected Status,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement.
A 2023 report found that more than 400 Somali people in Minnesota have temporary protected status, compared with around 700 Somalis with such status spread across the nation.
The federal government’s move may lead to legal challenges, according to Twin Cities lawyer Abdiqani Jabane, who represented a local Somali activist who was detained by ICE over the summer.
“Given Somalia’s continued instability, this termination is likely to face legal challenges, similar to the recent attempt to end TPS for South Sudan, which a federal judge temporarily blocked. In the meantime, Somali families are living with fear, uncertainty, and the prospect of life-altering disruption,” Jabane said in a statement.
Many Somali immigrants moved to Minnesota for social connections, a strong network of refugee resettlement agencies and for the state’s welcoming reputation. Economic opportunities have kept them here. Nearly all Somalis in Minnesota are citizens or legal residents, and a few hundred reside in the state with Temporary Protected Status, which was first granted to Somali refugees in 1991.
