Let's Talk About It/Why Does America Keep Turning Their Back on Haitian Migrants

Haitians have sought asylum at US borders for decades, but every presidential administration since the 1970s has treated Haitians differently than other migrant groups, rejecting asylum claims, holding them longer in detention, and making it harder for them to settle down in safety. In the early 1990s for example, when the United States detained more than 12,000 Haitian refugees at Guantanamo indefinitely. 

The United States inhumane treatment of Haitian refugees, whom the country has often cast as criminals, unskilled, diseased, and poor, has been a central part of the immigration detention story. Policies were specifically designed to deter Haitians from coming in.

Haitians are still reeling from the January 2010 earthquate that affected 3 million people, causing irreparable damage to homes and infrastructure. Gangs have since risen in power, leading many Haitians to live in fear for their lives and families.