Ukrainian family in Cleveland faces deportation after building life in Ohio

Tamila Vashchuk and her husband Mykola have become minor celebrities in Cleveland, Ohio. The Ukrainian couple have appeared on local magazine covers and been invited onto morning television shows. En route to building a successful pierogi food business, they have met with the state governor. Mykola, a recent law graduate from Cleveland State University, hopes to take the bar exam someday. Most Sundays, they volunteer at the local church.

Now, the family faces an immigration court hearing they believe could result in deportation back to Ukraine, where they would struggle to treat their son's illness and where Russia's ferocious assault has increased in recent weeks. Four years ago, Tamila noticed their 10-year-old son was not growing physically as expected. Facing astronomical medical costs in Ohio, Tamila and her son temporarily returned to their hometown, Kyiv, to get his health assessed at an affordable cost. Before leaving, she made numerous trips to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services office in Cleveland and called Customs and Border Protection, receiving assurances that their humanitarian parole stamps would allow re-entry without issues. However, when the treatment ended and the family returned through Boston Logan International Airport in December 2022, they were immediately issued removal orders for allegedly violating the parole terms, which prohibit leaving the US. Mykola, who entered the US only once, does not face deportation.

Tamila and her son now face a court hearing, initially set for late June but rescheduled for August, that could see them taken into custody and deported. If deported, the health of their child, whose daily medication for hormonal deficiency must be refrigerated, would be at significant risk. Russia's targeting of Ukraine's energy infrastructure has reduced electricity generation capacity by 50%, making refrigeration nearly impossible. Moreover, the medicine supply in Ukraine is unreliable.

Cleveland's immigration court is known for its harsh rulings. TRAC, a research center at Syracuse University, found that immigration judges in Cleveland have been denying asylum applications at rates over 70% for years. The judge assigned to the Vashchuks has the highest asylum denial rate in the court and one of the highest in the country. A DHS spokesperson stated that Tamila and her son attempted to illegally re-enter through Boston without valid travel documents and will receive full due process.

The Vashchuks are not alone. Temporary protected status for about 103,000 Ukrainian nationals is set to end in October. Last year, the Trump administration froze the Uniting for Ukraine program, which had allowed over 235,000 people to enter the US. Human rights groups are urging the administration to extend immigration resources for Ukrainians. Historically, Cleveland has hosted one of the largest Ukrainian communities in the US, which has grown by several thousand people since the invasion. Local organizations emphasize that Ukrainians have been a boon to the economy and community, and they advocate for passing the bipartisan Ukrainian Adjustment Act to provide a pathway to permanent residency.