Filipino American groups are urging Philippine President Benigno Aquino III to apply for temporary protected status for undocumented Filipinos in the United States, reports the Inquirer.
TPS would allow undocumented Filipinos to live and work in the United States if returning would be unsafe due to conditions from Typhoon Haiyan. It would also allow them to return to the Philippines for such emergencies as burying their dead and then later return back to the US.
The groups are being supported by 20 US Senators.
“Typhoon Haiyan has wrought unparalleled destruction and tragic loss of life in the Philippines,” the senators said in a statement. “Victims of Typhoon Haiyan clearly meet the eligibility requirements for TPS, and we urge you to extend this designation as soon as possible.”
You can read about this growing national coordinated effort by Filipino American groups in the Inquirer.