Chants of "We did it!" and "Gracias, Biden!" rang out over the course of a Tuesday afternoon rally in front of Doral, Florida's, El Arepazo restaurant, where over two dozen Venezuelans and Venezuelan-Americans gathered to celebrate the Biden administration's decision to grant Temporary Protected Status to their community.
In addition to shielding as many as 320,000 eligible individuals from the threat of deportation, the humanitarian protections the Biden administration announced Monday will also allow Venezuelans living in the United States to apply for work authorization.
At El Arepazo, many of those gathered were Democratic voters eager to mark the fulfillment of what they saw as a key Biden campaign promise — the rally was organized by the group Venezolanos con Biden.
But also present were recently arrived Venezuelans who were unable to vote in last year's election, and who will be able to benefit from the new TPS designation.
Among them was Francisco Rodriguez, who came to the United States 16 months ago with his wife, Luisa, to leave behind the humanitarian crisis in their home country.
"Over there you work and you work and you still don't have enough to buy food," he said. "Getting your hands on what you need to be able to live is very difficult."
Because they previously lacked legal status and work permits during their time here, the Rodriguezes have had to rely on the help of friends who've been in the country longer, as well as on charity from churches. Applying for TPS will bring self-reliance and, the couple hopes, the ability to even send money to relatives back home.
"The first thought I had when I heard about the TPS decision was that we will get to feel like real people again," said Rodriguez. "I'll be able to walk without fear and work here in the U.S. There's no words to express what TPS means for us."
A veterinarian by training, Rodriguez said he will take the first job that comes his way once his work authorization is approved.
"I would like to work in the field that I feel most competent in, but Venezuelans aren't scared of hard work," he said. "We are willing to work any job honestly and honorably."
Eligible Venezuelans have 180 days to apply for TPS, which requires a $50 application fee, an $85 biometrics fee and a $410 fee for those seeking work authorization. Applicants will also undergo a background check and are required to provide proof they entered the United States before the March 8 order was issued.
Once granted, the protective status lasts up to 18 months. Biden administration officials stressed that while TPS protections could be extended, they should not be considered permanent, and that the action should not be a signal to Venezuelans outside of the United States to migrate.
Even though TPS doesn't provide a pathway to permanent legal residence, Helena Nicolas said that applying for temporary status would bring a welcome dose of stability to her American life. Nicolas came to the United States on a tourist visa three years ago, and has remained in the country legally by applying for student visas and taking English courses at FIU. Her coursework is slated to come to an end in April.
"As soon as I can submit an application for TPS I will do it, so that I can stabilize my life. Because when I wake up I think to myself: What will happen tomorrow? Will I have to go? Will I be able to stay?" said Nicolas. "I don't want to go back to Venezuela because the situation there is just getting worse and worse."
Nicolas has been living with a cousin in Doral. She hopes being legally authorized to work in the United States will give her an opportunity to find work in the field she specialized in in Venezuela: civil engineering.
"I'll be able to get a work permit and work. I'll be able to be somebody here in the U.S."
While stories like Nicolas' and Rodriguez's paint a clear picture of how individual lives stand to be impacted by the new TPS designation, it's less clear how that policy change will reverberate across Miami politics, if at all.
Despite Biden campaigning on the promise of granting TPS to Venezuelans, Venezuelan Americans shifted toward the Republican Party during the 2020 election, helping give former President Donald Trump the largest margin of victory in a Florida presidential election since 2004.
