A group of more than 30 U.S. House Democrats led by Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of Miramar, the only Haitian American member of Congress, and Gregory Meeks of New York City is demanding urgent federal action to halt the illegal flow of American-made guns and ammo to Haiti.
They say the weapons — most of which originate in South Florida, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime — are fueling gang violence that has destabilized the island nation and driven mass migration.
In a Friday letter, Cherfilus-McCormick, Meeks and Florida U.S. Reps. Kathy Castor, Lois Frankel, Darren Soto, Fredrica Wilson, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and other federal lawmakers implored Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to impose a coordinated crackdown.
They outlined several policy recommendations, including expanded U.S. Customs inspections of cargo leaving the Miami River; increased tracing and recovery of firearms in Haiti by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; stricter rules on anonymous shipping; and collaboration with the Dominican Republic to intercept smuggled arms.
A safer Haiti translates into a more secure America, the lawmakers argue.
“The unabated flow of illicit arms to Haiti doesn’t just represent a threat to the safety of millions of Haitians on the island — it threatens U.S. national security as the instability created by gangs using U.S.-manufactured weapons drives outward migration,” the letter states.
The letter follows months of rising pressure from human rights advocates and lawmakers. That includes a September letter Cherfilus-McCormick and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren penned with many others to then-Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and then-Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas highlighting the surge in weapons trafficking since the July 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse.
Haiti manufactures no firearms or ammunition, yet its streets are flush with U.S.-made weapons — AR-15s, AK-47-style rifles, .50-caliber guns and handguns — smuggled primarily through the Miami River and Port Everglades.
The United Nations estimates that up to 500,000 firearms are now circulated illegally in the country.
Between 2016 and 2023, the United Nations found roughly 90% of Caribbean-bound illicit weapons shipments originated in Florida. Gangs now control more than 90% of Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital, and have displaced more than a million people through violent attacks, arson, kidnappings and sexual violence.
Recent U.S. law enforcement actions uncovered smuggling rings operating from Florida to Haiti and the Dominican Republic. In January, a Guatemalan national living in Tampa pleaded guilty to trafficking nearly 900 firearms. In February, Dominican authorities seized a shipping container from Miami carrying 36,000 rounds and multiple assault-style rifles.
Despite those and other isolated successes, federal officials have complained of limited resources to consistently inspect outbound shipments. Only random searches are currently performed, often missing weapons hidden in shipments of clothing, food, or electronics.
The U.S. Department of Commerce said in December that it has no export control officers stationed in the Caribbean.
To address the issue, Cherfilus-McCormick and Meek’s letter also recommended Rubio and Noem support the passage of Mills’ Haiti Criminal Collusion Transparency Act, which would impel the U.S. government to expose and penalize Haitian political and economic elites who collaborate with gangs.
They commended Rubio for his comments in March about the role illegal arms trafficking plays in the Caribbean. But while such statements draw attention to the matter, they said, concrete steps must be taken.
“Words alone will not stop the flow of illicit arms to gangs, which they use to massacre women and children and displace a little under a tenth of the population,” the letter said. “Swift action towards stopping the illegal flow of arms to Haiti will be a first step. We look forward to working with you to address this urgent matter.”
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