SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Omar Aquino (D-Chicago) praised Attorney General Kwame Raoul for joining a coalition of 22 attorneys general in opposition to the potential deportation of people who hold Temporary Protected Status (TPS).

“At a time when immigrants are being relentlessly attacked by the President of the United States, I am happy to see that the State of Illinois under Attorney General Raoul will stand up to protect these people,” said Aquino.

TPS protects individuals whose countries are affected by war, natural disasters and other crises. There are approximately 300,000 people in the United States who hold TPS. The Department of Homeland Security announced in 2017 that it plans to terminate TPS for individuals from El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, and Sudan.

“The people who hold Temporary Protected Status fled to the United States due to war, climate disasters, and other tragedies,” said Aquino. “The Department of Homeland Security has made it clear that they are going to carry out the president’s racist agenda and target immigrants of color. We cannot allow this to go on, and I am grateful for Attorney General Raoul’s commitment.”