US courts clear way for deportations of South Sudan, Myanmar nationals

A federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration can proceed with ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for South Sudanese nationals residing in the United States. U.S. District Judge Patti Saris of the District of Massachusetts denied an appeal from immigrant rights groups, including African Communities Together, to maintain TPS protections for South Sudanese.

The decision follows a June 6-3 Supreme Court ruling that allowed the administration to strip TPS from Haitians and Syrians, who previously had protections in the U.S. due to crises in their homelands. Saris stated that the plaintiffs' arguments were "self-contradictory" and would undermine the initial authority to grant TPS. The DHS argued that the original TPS designation would be invalid if the department lacked the authority to terminate it.

DHS General Counsel James Percival stated that the court's ruling ensures that "American people are denied what they voted for." The South Sudan conflict has resulted in over 400,000 deaths since independence in 2011, and the administration terminated TPS in November, citing the country's lack of meeting the designation's conditions.

South Sudanese TPS holders contributed over $7.8 billion annually to the U.S. economy, primarily working in construction, hospitality, and healthcare.