AMNA NAWAZ: The Trump administration announced# today that, starting on September 2, Haitians## cannot remain in the U.S. under a special# temporary protection status they have been## granted.

About half-a-million Haitians# in the U.S. could now face deportation.

The U.S. government says Haiti, which# has been racked by gang violence,## is now safe enough for residents to# return home.

That's despite State## Department warnings that advise# Americans not to travel to Haiti.

It's part of a broader change# by the administration to revoke## legal protections for citizens of several# unstable countries, including Venezuela.

Many Venezuelan migrants ended up in# Chicago, where special correspondent## Fred de Sam Lazaro about a community on# edge.

It's part of our series Race Matters.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Here in Chicago,## two successful entrepreneurs have carved# out a piece of t..

They were proud to invite us into their thriving# business with two dozen employees.

As immigration## raids intensified in Chicago, though,# they asked us to hide their identities.

ANA GIL GARCIA, Illinois Venezuelan Alliance:# We have a community that is very afraid.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Ana Gil Garcia runs the# Illinois Venezuelan alliance, an organization## that since 2017 has provided a variety of# services to the growing community in this state.

ANA GIL GARCIA: We were receiving phone calls# that they needed food because we don't want to## go out.

And then one of the things that# really is the saddest part for me is,## this is the last week in the school system.# The children have their recitals.

The children## have their graduation.

And parents,# they don't want to take the children.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: They're afraid# that they won't return home.

ANA GIL GARCIA: Yes, they are very afraid.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Are# these people legal?

I mean,## they actually have a right# to be here based on TPS?

ANA GIL GARCIA: Yes, they have --# yes, they have the right to be here,## 11,000 people that were given TPS.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: TPS, or temporary# protected status for up to 18 months,## is given to individuals from designated# countries beset by armed conflict or natural## disasters.

It shields them from deportation# and enables them to obtain work permits.

There are currently more than a million# TPS holders in the U.S. from more than## a dozen countries.

The Biden administration# granted some 230,000 Venezuelans TPS status## in 2021 and expanded protections in 2023 as# Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro cracked## down on opposition as inflation# spiked and as food prices soared.

DONALD TRUMP, President of the United States:# They emptied their jails into our country.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: The Trump administration# moved quickly to end those protections,## the president singling out# Venezuelans in particular.

DONALD TRUMP: They sent their gangs, probably# the worst gang anywhere in the world,## as bad as MS-13, maybe worse, and they# came out of the jails of Venezuela.

ANA GIL GARCIA: Unfortunately, this is# a community that has been criminalized.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Ana Gil Garcia says the vast# majority of Venezuelan newcomers are not criminal.

ANA GIL GARCIA: The general thinking that we have## is that all those executive orders# about immigrants is about us.

It's## not about the older immigrant.

It's# about -- more about the Venezuelan.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: And Chicago,# a so-called sanctuary city,## has also been drawn into the national# conversation around immigration.

It's quiet now, but it's to this spot# called the Landing Zone that tens of## thousands of migrants began arriving in# Chicago beginning in 2022 bused here by## Texas Governor Greg Abbott.

Some two-thirds# of the new arrivals were from Venezuela.

ANA GIL GARCIA: August 2022, I got a phone# call from the mayor's office telling me,## are you aware that there are four buses coming## from Texas, and three of those are# Venezuelans?

And I said, no clue.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Gil Garcia's group and# other Chicago nonprofits sprang into action.

ANA GIL GARCIA: We have done many different# things, from clothing drive, furniture drive,## TPS clinics, asylum clinics, and# we were the primary providers of## the interpreters and translators.# And, still, we're working with them.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Working with TPS holders like# Tino (ph), an I.T.

specialist, and Malen (ph), a## teacher who fled Venezuela and asked us to# hide their identity for fear of deportation.

TINO, Venezuelan Migrant (through# translator): He tells me: "Sir,## you would better leave, because# they're going to take you to.. FRED DE SAM LAZARO: This is what a member# of the Venezuelan National Guard told Tino## when he protested the scarcity of# gasoline under the Maduro regime.

TINO (through translator):## The person who protests, the one who# raises his voice, becomes a target.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: So he fled, made# Chicago his new home, and was granted TPS.

TINO: For immigrants, you feel the# same as other persons in Chicago,## because the law in Chicago, you# are the same whatever person with## paper or not.

You are the same.

You have# the same right, and then you feel safe.

MAN: There's ICE on your block.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: But as federal# immigration raids across the city## increased in recent weeks,# sparking massive protests,## the level of fear has also gone up for# this couple, who've been together 10 years.

MALEN, Venezuelan Migrant (through# translator): It is worrying,## because we left one unstable# situation for another.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: What is# your biggest concern today?

MALEN (through translator): My# level of concern is enormous,## because we came to this country with a# purpose.

We didn't expect this.

We were## running away from the impunity of Venezuela, and# the purpose was to work, to achieve our goals.

CHUCK HERNANDEZ, Chair, Chicago Republican# Party: We support the legal immigrant.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Chuck Hernandez is# chair of the Chicago Republican Party.

CHUCK HERNANDEZ: There's not really an# appetite to support those who come here,## whether it be illegally or under a# temporary program that was put in by Biden.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: He says the Trump# administration has a right to enact its## immigration policies.

He says the arrivals from# Venezuela have strained Chicago's resources.

CHUCK HERNANDEZ: We're having right now in Chicago# a real crunch financially.

And then the amounts of## Chicago taxpayer money going towards many of these# groups, it's money that could be used towards## citizens that should not be going towards these# people that are here on a temporary type of basis.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: How do you respond# to people who say T is for temporary?

ANA GIL GARCIA: The issue here is now that# they're dealing with things.

They're dealing## with human beings.

And when a human being is# afraid to go back, and that really is what the## situation is here, that people has been# told that Venezuela is getting better.

Venezuela is not getting better.# Venezuela is getting worse.

CHUCK HERNANDEZ: I sympathize with# them, but this was the fault of the## Biden administration by giving people# false hope that you can come here.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: For their part,## Venezuelans, we spoke with said# they f.. TINO (through translator): In my country, there# is no legal process.

The United States was the## first country to guarantee those freedoms.

And# now, living through this situation, it feels the## same as what happened in Venezuela, because they# are not respecting the due process of the people.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: In the meantime, many# will continue to stay in the shadows,## afraid of what lurks outside their front door.

For the "PBS News Hour," I'm# Fred de Sam Lazaro in Chicago.