Boston-Area TPS Holders To Rally In Washington For Permanent TPS Status

Busloads of Boston-area TPS holders, refugees here under Temporary Protected Status, and those who support them, are traveling overnight Monday night bound for Washington D.C. There, they plan to join their counterparts from across the country for a rally in front of the White House Tuesday morning where they plan to push for permanent residency. TPS is for refugees fleeing violence and natural disasters in their home countries where returning home could be dangerous. Overall, there are about 300,000 TPS recipients in the United States. In Massachusetts as of 2016, there were 12,000 TPS refugees.

Victor Landaverde, a TPS holder from El Salvador, lives in Malden with his wife and their four U.S.-born daughters. They plan to be part of tomorrow's TPS rally. Victor spoke with WGBH All Things Considered host Barbara Howard about tomorrow’s rally and his TPS status. This transcript has been edited for clarity.

Barbara Howard: So Victor, tell us what is it that brought you to the United States?

Victor Landaverde: There was a civil war in El Salvador that ended in 1992, and I left from there in 1995 because there was no work. It was very dangerous — a lot of gangs in the street and my father was sick. My father had cancer, so we don't have the money to pay for his treatment. That's why I decided to immigrate to United States to try to work and make some money to pay for my father's treatment.

Howard: Well, some might say you're then here for economic reasons, not so much TPS reasons. Is that enough to keep you here?

Landaverde: Yeah, that's enough to keep me here. I got TPS in 2001.

Howard: Okay. So you were cleared as a TPS holder, means that the government here agreed back then that you have a right to be here because it's a war-torn country and it was too dangerous to return?

Landaverde: Yes, exactly.

Howard: So now you're here, and you've gone ahead and met your wife here?

Landaverde: No, I met my wife there, but we got married here.

Howard: What brought her here?

Landaverde: She moved here because her family was very poor. The same situation. We tried to look for a better future.

Howard: You’re from the same town?

Landaverde: Yes.

Howard: You are both TPS holders, and you have children, I understand?

Landaverde: Yes, I have four daughters. One is 17, another one is 16, the third one is almost 15, and the little one is 10.

Howard: Are they all U.S. born, all U.S. citizens?

Landaverde: Yes they are, they are all U.S. born.

Howard: So this must be very troubling if you and your wife had to go back to El Salvador. What would happen with your girls?

Landaverde: That is very tough. We talk a lot with the girls. This is very very hard for me, as a parent, to explain to them, we might need to separate. And if we had to go back to El Salvador, it’s way too dangerous over there. They have never been to El Salvador, so they don't know how to live there. You know, it's very tough for the whole family, especially for the little one because she's can’t even understand what’s going on. They cry all the time.

Howard: How old are you Victor?

Landaverde: 42.

Howard: How old were you when you first came to United States?

Landaverde: I was 19.

Howard:: So you've spent your entire adult life here?

Landaverde: Yes, exactly. I spent 22 years here and 19 years in my home country. I have a lot of friends in my community here. In the town that I come from, Malden, I used to be a soccer coach. I'm very much involved in the community, involved with the schools.

Howard: Yes, and to be a TPS holder, you have to have a clean record, you can't be a criminal to be a TPS holder.

Landaverde: Exactly. We have to have our background checked every 18 months.

Howard: And you pay taxes?

Landaverde: I pay taxes and I pay my private school for my daughters.

Howard: What do you do for work at Harvard University?

Landaverde: I am a manager of custodians.

Howard: Are you afraid?

Landaverde: Yes, I would say yes. Because if I haven't had my TPS, I wouldn’t be able to have this job, to support my family, to pay for school for my daughters. If I lost my TPS, I'm not going to have this job.

Howard: What do you hope to get out of this trip to D.C.?

Landaverde: You know, we are part of the dream to organize this last year, to have all these people coming in tomorrow. We have 10 buses coming in from Boston tomorrow. We are going to be almost 600 people from Boston here, to try and stay strong.

Howard: That's Victor Landaverde. He lives in Malden. He's from El Salvador originally, and works at Harvard University. He's in Washington D.C. with his wife, also a TPS recipient. The two of them have four girls born in the United States. This is WGBH’s All Things Considered.

This article has been updated.