UCF student sues to stop Trump from stripping Venezuelans of legal protections
A University of Central Florida student is among seven Venezuelans suing the Trump administration in federal court, arguing they should be able to stay legally in the United States.
Cecilia Gonzalez, whose family fled the economically-ravaged country ruled by socialist strongman Nicolas Maduro in 2017, is a plaintiff in a lawsuit filed Wednesday by the ACLU Foundation of Northern California in San Francisco.
The suit seeks to rescind Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's decision earlier this month to strip 600,000 Venezuelans in the U.S. of the temporary protected status, or TPS, which allows them to legally be in the country, hold jobs and avoid deportation.
'I cried for myself, for my family, and for the many friends that I have that rely on TPS for their survival,' Gonzalez wrote in her plaintiff's declaration about her reaction to Noem's decision. 'It was like having the ground disappear beneath my feet. … I would be terrified to return to Venezuela,' wrote the Kissimmee resident.
Venezuelan refugees in Florida face deportation after Trump revokes protections
The suit claims Noem has no authority to revoke the decision by her predecessor, Alejandro Mayorkas, to extend the protected status originally granted to Venezuelan refugees by President Joe Biden in 2021.
Noem's decision means Gonzalez and nearly 80,000 other Venezuelans in Central Florida can be deported when their status expires in either April or September.
Gonzalez, who is at risk of losing her TPS on Sept. 10, lives with her parents and younger brother and is an applicant on her parents' 'long-pending asylum application,' the suit states.
She expects to graduate with a bachelor's degree from UCF in May.
She and the six other plaintiffs are part of the National TPS Alliance, which represents TPS holders across the country.
'These individuals cannot return safely to their country of origin,' the suit states. 'They represent the diverse population of Venezuelans who have relied on TPS to provide them the most basic forms of human security—a stable place to live and a chance to work for a living during this time of severe crisis in Venezuela.'
Gonzalez and other Venezuelans in the country are 'educators, laborers, caretakers, and advocates; parents, students, and children,' the suit states.
'They live all across the country, with homes, families, jobs, and deep community ties,' the suit states. 'If Secretary Noem's TPS termination goes into effect, they will be subject to deportation yet unable to return safely to their home country; and without legal authorization to live or work in the United States.'
Trump campaigned on plans for 'mass deportation' of illegal immigrants but said he would 'start with the criminals.' White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said last month, however, that no undocumented immigrant was 'off the table.'
A Miami man told CBS News that his Venezuelan wife, who had an upcoming immigration court date, was 'snatched' in an immigration raid on Jan. 26.
The lawsuit claims federal law does not allow an administration to cut short a TPS period. It also disputes what it claims is the assumption by Trump, Noem, Vice President JD Vance and others in the administration that TPS is 'illegal.'
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The plaintiffs also argue Noem's actions were 'motivated at least in part by racial animus,' citing her calling Venezuelan TPS holders 'dirtbags' when she announced her decision on Fox News.
In 2024, Noem made similar claims when she wrote on X, 'Venezuela didn't send us their best. They emptied their prisons and sent criminals to America. Deportations need to start on DAY ONE of [Trump's] term.'
Those statements were just part of 'a torrent of similar racist statements that Secretary Noem, President Trump, and members of the Trump campaign and administration have made to attack and marginalize nonwhite immigrants generally, and the Venezuelan TPS community in particular,' the suit states.
Gonzalez said in her declaration that she stopped looking into graduate school programs after learning she might not be able to remain in the country.
'It is exhausting to live with such uncertainty,' she wrote. 'My brain is constantly worried about my future, and at the same time, I am also on edge in my day to day activities.'
But, she added, 'I am trying to find ways to move forward, and for me, that has beencontinuing advocating for my community. I find comfort knowing that my skills and passion can help the bigger cause.'
The suit did not appear to hamper Noem's actions on TPS. On Thursday afternoon, the Wall Street Journal reported she plans to revoke similar legal protections for Haitians.
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