Trump’s False Accusations | Haitian Migrants Fear Spike in Racist Violence in Ohio

(Springfield) “Some want to leave, some have already left”: In Springfield, Ohio, migrants who fled gangs in Haiti now fear racist violence after Donald Trump repeated the false accusation that they eat pets.

In this small, predominantly white city in the northeastern United States, several schools and the city hall were evacuated this week after bomb threats and threats against the Haitian community have increased.

Romane Pierre, a Haitian restaurant manager, closed earlier than usual Thursday, worried about his employees walking home late at night. He said several Haitian migrants have already left the city and others are considering it.

In recent days, Republicans, led by Donald Trump, have seized on false allegations that there is a “invasion” of migrants in Springfield, attacking and eating residents’ dogs and cats.

The local police have denied this theory, as have many fact-checking media outlets including AFP.

“They eat dogs,” the former president nevertheless asserted during the debate which opposed him on Tuesday to the Democrat Kamala Harris, bringing the tension to its peak.

“It’s a sad reality, which is causing panic,” the director of a Haitian home in the city who was the target of threats on Thursday evening, which the federal police are investigating, told AFP.

Viles Dorsainvil refers to insults and calls to “get out”, which originate from a “political agenda” consisting of waving the scarecrow of illegal immigration.

Economic renewal

Yet it is immigration that has allowed this city of less than 60,000 inhabitants in 2020, which was following the demographic decline typical of the post-industrial north of the United States, to regain a certain economic dynamic.

A city plan helped attract new businesses and, with them, between 10,000 and 15,000 Haitians who came by word of mouth to meet the influx of work.

But the job creation was not accompanied by policies to address the systemic problems the city faced, including poverty.

Pre-existing tensions in the housing market, as well as medical and educational infrastructure, have worsened, says Wes Babian, a former pastor at a local Baptist church.

And residents’ complaints have begun to take on a growing “racist tinge,” reaching “almost dangerous” levels over the past year, he adds.

Many members of the Haitian community are in legal or protected status. Some have lived in the United States for several years.

But they are regularly accused of being brought to Springfield on federally chartered buses and of living on public assistance unlike the dwindling local population.

“Real threat”

Philomene Philostin was naturalized and came to settle there to open a grocery store, which sells Haitian products in particular.

Others, like Fritz, his pregnant wife and their two-year-old child, are struggling to make ends meet. He arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border five months ago and was able to cross to seek asylum.

The food aid he receives cannot be used to pay rent and they are currently staying with a friend.

He found a night job as a cleaner in the food industry but his salary “hasn’t been paid yet,” he told AFP, before the occupants of a car passing by shouted “Fuck you” at him through the window.

Since Donald Trump’s comments during the debate, Daniel has only left his home for essential tasks. He benefits from a specific temporary immigration status, linked to the political and security situation in Haiti.

“The threat is real,” he says, but it comes from a “minority” that is spreading this “hateful rhetoric.” He has lived in Springfield for four years and has no plans to leave.

And he can count on some locals who are on his side.

Sitting on his porch, decorated with an American flag, Vietnam War veteran William Thompson says the United States is “the land of the free” and Haitian migrants “have the opportunity to come here to be free.”

And if, as many fear, things get out of hand, he has his “weapons inside,” he laughs.