2007-06-07 22:26:52 -

BROOKLYN PARK, Minnesota (AP) - The size of Liberian Abdullah Kiatamba's extended family in Minnesota could shrink come October, when a special refugee designation that has let them stay in the United States expires.
«I have 10 family members in Minnesota who might have to go,» Kiatamba said Thursday, extending all of his fingers in

the air. «Ten! And five more living in other states.
Liberians have been living in the U.S. for nearly two decades because of civil war back home, but after elections in 2005 and modest signs that the west African country is stabilizing, the Department of Homeland Security is lifting an immigration designation _ the Temporary Protected Status _ that has allowed many Liberians to remain here.
Many, however, do not want to return yet, worried about their security and job prospects, and are lobbying for more time.
«One day I would like to return and make a contribution,» Kiatamba, the chairman of the Organization of Liberians in Minnesota, said from his townhouse in this Minneapolis suburb. «But when? How? Liberia is still going through a huge recovery. The infrastructure doesn't have the capacity to absorb everybody. There's no educational system. The political system is still being developed.
While Congress focuses on a sweeping immigration bill that would tighten border security and rein in illegal immigration, Liberians and their advocates in Minnesota hope to draw attention to a small piece of legislation that would extend their stay in the U.S. after their refugee status runs out Oct. 1.
A «Liberian Solidarity Week» planned in Minnesota for the final week of June will include an appeal to lawmakers in the state and across the U.S. who represent pockets of Liberians, including in Philadelphia and Providence, Rhode Island.
«There are some doubts and concerns and fears that people in Congress will not take time off to focus on our bill,» Kiatamba said. «The Liberian community still needs to make the case to the American people» that they should be allowed to remain in the country.
Democratic Rep. Keith Ellison, the first Muslim in Congress, is a co-sponsor of a House of Representatives bill that would extend the TPS designation, which allows refugees to remain in the U.S. as long as their home countries are unstable _ due to either war or environmental disaster. A similar bill has been introduced in the Senate.
«Like any legislation, it needs strong advocates so that it gets the time it deserves,» said Amber Shipley, an aide to Ellison. «For my boss, it is a huge priority. It will be something that he advocates strongly.
«Other people can talk about border security, but we know the importance of this issue,» she said.
The Department of Homeland Security has said about 3,600 Liberians are living in the U.S. under TPS, though activists claim there are thousands more. As many as 25,000 Liberians live in Minnesota, though demographers are not sure of the population's size.
«For each person affected by TPS, there's a relational effect with their children or spouses or other family members,» Kiatamba said. «This will affect thousands in Minnesota alone.
It is possible the sweeping reform bill could solve the problem for Liberians by extending legalization to people currently living in the country with a TPS designation, according to the Washington-based National Immigration Forum, an immigrant advocate group. But that bill has yet to take final form and faces more contentious debate, leaving Liberians and their advocates to push for their own legislation.
Michele Garnett McKenzie, of the group Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights, said time is running low for Liberians living under the TPS designation.
«We are concerned about the time _ concerned that amid all the immigration debate it's not going to be on legislators' radar. It's really small potatoes compared with comprehensive reform.