Almost American

In 2018, The Department of Homeland Security terminated Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for almost all TPS holders—foreign nationals from countries beset by civil unrest, violence, or natural disaster who are permitted lawful residence in the United States, the majority of whom are from El Salvador, Honduras, and Haiti. The decision left American families on the brink of a family separation crisis—not on the border, but in communities across the United States. 

In Almost American, the Ayala Flores family are in the midst of this crisis after living and working in the nation’s capital for 20 years. Sheltered by Temporary Protected Status for nearly two decades, Salvadoran TPS holders have no criminal records, pay taxes even without the right to public benefits, and contribute to their communities as homeowners, entrepreneurs, and workers. All the while, they are raising U.S.-born children.  

The Ayala Flores family is caught in an anti-immigration agenda that has taken hold in Washington, D.C. While the Trump administration ended their status, the Biden administration acted in the eleventh-hour to extend their TPS until mid-2024, an election year. More than 400,000 TPS holders have been at risk of their status suddenly changing since 2016—once TPS is revoked, thousands of families will be torn apart, with a devastating impact on the lives of almost 200,000 U.S.-born children. Follow the Ayala Flores family as they fight before the judiciary and in the court of public opinion for a path to permanent residence to keep their family—and entire communities—intact.