As of Monday, a bright red billboard denouncing four Republican politicians — Secretary of State Marco Rubio and U.S. Reps. María Elvira Salazar, Carlos Giménez, and Mario Diaz-Balart — is on display on the Palmetto Expressway, labeling them “TRAITORS: To Immigrants, To Miami-Dade, To The American Dream.” Underneath the message is a Venezuelan flag next to "Protect TPS" in both English and Spanish.
The billboard addresses the Trump administration's decision to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Venezuelans in the United States, a decision supported by the four on the billboard.
Here is what you need to know about the new visual campaign.
Where is the billboard?
The billboard is located on the Palmetto Expressway between Doral and Hialeah, explicitly aimed at getting the attention of Doral and Hialeah residents, two cities that would be most impacted by the change in policy, according to a Miami-Dade Democratic Hispanic Caucus press release.Who is behind the campaign?
The Miami-Dade Democratic Hispanic Caucus is responsible for the new billboard, intended as the first of many to come, according to caucus president Abel S. Delgado."We've been hearing a lot from the community about how they feel betrayed … so we wanted to amplify that message, amplify that call to action, say 'This is not why they were sent by our communities to Washington, this is not how they're supposed to represent us, this is not what we want,'" Delgado said in a statement to New Times.
"We're both trying to speak for the people whose voices are not being heard, for the people who are afraid to speak up, because I'm sure there's plenty of people who voted Republican and did not expect this massive deportation effort," Delgado said. "At the same time, we're trying to reach people who maybe don't know everything going on on the immigration front and have them engage in this vital issue in our community."
What is TPS?
TPS, or Temporary Protected Status, is the legal designation granted by the federal government to specific populations who are fleeing their home countries due to violence, disaster, or other conflicts. Those granted TPS cannot be removed from the U.S., can obtain authorization to work, and may be granted permission to travel.More than 700,000 Venezuelans are currently living in the United States under TPS, many of whom fled the dictatorship of President Nicolás Maduro. The Trump administration recently suspended TPS for Venezuelans, putting Miami's Venezuelan population at risk of deportation. On March 31, a federal judge blocked the Trump administration's termination of TPS, protecting about 350,000 Venezuelan TPS holders from losing their jobs and legal status. The deportation protection took effect on April 7, the day the billboard went up.
