BROOKLYN CENTER, Minnesota (CNN) -- Thousands of Liberians living in the United States face deportation March 31 when a federal immigration status created for humanitarian purposes expires. Corvah Akoiwala is worried about what will happen to his children, born in the U.S., when he is sent to Liberia. In the 1990s, a bloody civil war raged through the West African nation, killing 250,000 people and displacing more than a million, according to a U.N. report. The United States extended "temporary protection status" to all Liberians who could get to America, and 14,000 of them took advantage of that humanitarian offer.
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14,000 Liberians took advantage of U.S. temporary status during civil war
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Liberians have to return home when status exemption expires March 31
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Corvah Akoiwala: "My fear is, who am I going to leave my kids with?"
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Sen. Jack Reed pushing for extension to allow Liberians to stay
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Corvah Akoiwala, a @placeholder national who was fresh out of college when civil war broke out, remembers how it used to be there.
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She said she has nightmares and panic attacks at the prospect of being separated from her two young @placeholder-born children.
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"They should have the right to become @placeholder citizens," he said.
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Critics say @placeholder should go back to Liberia when their status runs out.
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Critics say Liberians should go back to @placeholder when their status runs out.