Torli Krua, the founder of the national Free Liberia Movement, spoke at the Springfield City Council meeting on Feb. 10 to ask the council to approve a resolution that stands in solidarity with the Liberian people who live in the U.S. facing mass deportation and a crucial lawsuit. The council unanimously approved it.
Photo credit: Focus Springfield
SPRINGFIELD — The City Council unanimously passed a resolution during its Feb. 10 meeting that supports the inclusion of all Liberians living in the United States facing mass deportation and an emergency injunctive relief lawsuit.
The passing of this resolution means that councilors stand in solidarity with Liberians in the United States by urging the Trump administration to halt mass deportations and by recognizing the ongoing harm caused by systemic discrimination rooted in American colonization of Liberia.
“We have Black people who are promised American citizenship who are terrified based on the Trump administration’s [actions],” said Ward 4 City Councilor Malo Brown, the main sponsor of the resolution, during the meeting. “We have young kids and high school students who are hiding in their homes, unable to come outside.”
According to the resolution, the vote runs parallel to a nationwide push by the Free Liberia Movement to seek Emergency Temporary Injunctive Relief in a lawsuit against the United States Department of Homeland Security.
Among other things, the lawsuit, which is spearheaded by Rev. Torli H. Krua and a group of pro se plaintiffs, demands an immediate suspension of U.S. visa requirements for all individuals born in Liberia, as well as a halt to U.S. taxpayer funding to Liberia due to systemic inequalities, corruption, flawed electoral laws and a history of colonial injustice.
“We are here on this Earth for a short period of time, and to discriminate against people because of their color shouldn’t be a part of the United States of America,” said Krua, founder of the Free Liberia Movement, during the Feb. 10 council meeting.
The plaintiffs argue that Liberia is under the jurisdiction of the U.S., therefore all people born in Liberia are entitled to the privileges of a U.S. citizen.
According to a press release, plaintiffs argue that the “U.S. bears direct responsibility for the unlawful colonization of African American citizens in Liberia funded by American taxes and implemented by the U.S. Navy, and its subsequent destabilization, which continues to harm Liberians seeking equal rights and protections under U.S. law.”
In his comments to the council, Krua said Liberia absorbed many people who fled racial segregation in the U.S. for a 200-year-period, until a civil war in the West African nation over three decades ago caused the migration of many Liberian families back to the U.S.
Krua and the plaintiffs argue that these returning migrants should still be considered American citizens under the U.S. Constitution, but many families do not have that status right now, and therefore cannot work in the U.S.
“There’s an 18-year-old girl, a straight-A student; today, she’s been denied work permits so many times … [and] she cannot go to college,” Krua said. “Our community is dying slowly right here in the United States.”
Krua said the plaintiffs are requesting that the U.S. Federal Judge issue temporary injunctive reliefs to suspend U.S. visa requirements for Liberians, because they were historically granted privileges equal to U.S. citizens under the American Declaration of Independence, Massachusetts Constitution of 1780, Landmark Lawsuit-Brom & Betts v. Ashley, U.S. Constitution and the 1824 Constitution of Liberia approved in Washington City.
Plaintiffs are also seeking the suspension of U.S. taxpayer funding to Liberia and an issuance of gratis visas to affected Liberians wrongfully denied entry into the U.S., including grieving mothers, students, business professionals, witnesses in the pending lawsuit and heirs to U.S.-based estates.
The lawsuit also states that plaintiffs are asking the U.S. Federal Judge to “recognize the inherent rights of Liberians as descendants of Indigenous Americans and African American citizens unlawfully relocated under U.S. colonization policies.”
Lastly, the plaintiffs demand that historical misinformation about Liberia’s founding be corrected to better reflect the forced deportation and ethnic cleansing Liberians experienced while living in the U.S.
During the council meeting, Krua said he approached Massachusetts about this situation because he believes the state has been a “pacesetter” throughout history, and because the motion for emergency relief comes at a time where immigrants across the country face increasing uncertainty under the Trump administration.
“When Massachusetts speaks, America listens,” Krua said. “When Massachusetts leads, America follows.”
The plaintiffs, including Krua, believe that the vote by the Springfield City Council will “send a strong message” to Washington D.C. about the need for immediate intervention.
The entire Springfield City Council present during the Feb. 10 meeting lent resounding support to the resolution by co-sponsoring it with Brown.
“The Liberian people have a long and arduous history, and they come here like any other group to have come to this country for a better life; for a future,” Ward 6 City Councilor Victor Davila said. “They, too, are fabric of this great city.”
Ward 1 City Councilor Maria Perez called the resolution an “awakening” and stated that the council cannot “sit down and just turn our heads” during times such as these.
“We get involved in policies and policy, but we have to see in reality what’s going on,” Perez said. “And what’s going on, it’s not going to get any better.”
At-Large City Councilor Jose Delgado and Council Vice President Tracye Whitfield noted the very serious time the U.S. is in right now and talked about the fear many residents feel due to Trump’s policies, and the importance of educating the public about the significance of Liberians’ situation.
“I am very proud to be able to sign on to such a resolution,” Whitfield said. I think Black History Month is an appropriate time because I’m just going to really say it as clear and plain as we can: it is people of color that are being targeted…it’s really unfair; It’s really unjust; It’s really immoral.”
The passed resolution calls on local legislators, like U.S. Rep. Richard Neal, to create similar resolutions that support the welcoming of Liberian citizens into the U.S.
