Overview:
Springfield, Ohio leaders and residents confronted escalating fears over mass deportations, the termination of Haiti TPS and the risks facing thousands of Haitian families. At a packed town hall, officials detailed legal limits, resource shortages and rising threat of family separation, while residents demanded clearer answers and stronger protections from authorities.
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — One week after the federal government announced it officially terminated Haitian Temporary Protected Status (TPS), some residents say their city faces a “humanitarian crisis” that will leave more than 1,300 children in instability if their parents are deported. The town, which has become a national immigration flashpoint, is expected to be even more of a target when TPS officially expires on Feb. 3.
At a town hall on Thursday that drew 200 attendees to St. John Missionary Baptist Church, residents and advocates lamented that the town is unprepared to handle the fallout.
“We are sixty days away from these laws taking effect, and this city is not prepared,” longtime resident Darcy Bisker said after listening to the leaders’ reports on the impact so far.
Over two hours often disrupted by frustrated attendees, local leaders laid out the realities of the changing federal policy: More than 1,300 children under 4 years old face instability, 17 foster families are already caring for Haitian children whose parents are in deportation proceedings, workers continue to be laid off or are avoiding their jobs, and families are fleeing the town as the February expiration approaches.
As they listened, many residents later said city officials’ answers about handling ICE raids or responding to the fallout were not satisfactory. Of the handful of Haitian attendees, several left the gathering organized by the local NAACP chapter feeling no more informed or supported than before coming to the event.
“I used to be [up] at 4 a.m. every morning to get to work, now I’m too afraid to even open my door,” said Jean-Pierrot Pierre, a Haitian father of two, speaking in Creole after the meeting.
“If they take me, who will protect my children?” the former Amazon worker said.
Over the last decade, Springfield – a city of 60,000 – has drawn more than 12,000 Haitians seeking stability and jobs. It also drew criticism from right-wing extremists who accused town officials of running a haven for “illegal aliens.” Under the Biden administration, TPS was renewed and expanded to cover those arrivals, allowing them to live and work legally.
With the federal rollback of TPS under the Trump administration and Haiti being under a Level Four travel advisory, local organizations say they are straining under the weight of new cases, emergency needs and legal uncertainty to help Haitian neighbors seeking answers.
Thursday’s town hall, titled “preparations for mass deportations,” promised to update residents on actions underway. However, the atmosphere grew tense and raw as city officials, community advocates and service organization leaders outlined the logistical, legal and moral challenges ahead for families worried about possible deportations that could separate thousands of TPS Haitians and American-born children from their Haitian parents.
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Community members pressed for clarity about how churches, schools and local authorities can respond when federal agents arrive, with the primary concern being how to care for children who may be left behind.
“What is happening here is tearing many families apart,” said Marjorie Exumé, holding her toddler, after the meeting.
“We are not asking for special treatment,” Exumé said. “We are asking for humanity. Help us stay together as a family.”
Local agencies warn they cannot keep up
Casey Rollins, executive director of St. Vincent’s de Paul, and other service providers described a wave of families now seeking help with passports, food assistance, emergency housing, and legal guidance. Some parents have already been deported, leaving U.S.-born children behind without documentation to travel to Haiti or any other country.
Seventeen foster families in Springfield are caring for Haitian children affected by deportations, including nine unaccompanied minors navigating complicated guardianship questions.
“These children cannot legally be returned to Haiti,” said, “and third country solutions require State Department cooperation. We are in uncharted territory.
“We knew this moment was coming, but now it is here.”
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Chad Wilson, executive director of United Way, said more than 1,300 Haitian children under age four in Springfield now face instability, with many parents losing work authorization as deadlines and denials mount.
“Food insecurity is becoming a major concern,” Wilson said. “Families cannot work while their papers are pending, and the resources that once carried them are now stretched thin.”
The Springfield Unity Fund, created specifically to help Haitian residents, has received $109,059 in donations from around the world, but demand is now outpacing support.
Katie Kersh, senior attorney with Advocates for Basic Legal Equality (ABLE), explained that while churches control entry to their private spaces, ICE can legally enter with a valid warrant. She urged residents to seek proper legal guidance rather than rely on assumptions.
Immigration enforcement, she added, “is shaped not only by U.S. policy but by agreements with third countries,” some of which have already returned Haitians to Haiti despite widespread violence and instability.
City leaders urge compassion, but assurances fall short
Mayor Rob Rue urged compassion and solidarity, acknowledging the fear gripping the Haitian community and the economic strain on local businesses.
“As a white man, I can’t fully understand their fear,” he said, “but I will continue to raise my voice when any group is treated unfairly again and again.”
City Manager Brian Heck called misinformation one of Springfield’s most dangerous threats, stressing that local government does not control federal immigration decisions.
“How we respond will define us,” he said.
Springfield Police Chief Allison Elliott emphasized that her officers cannot interfere with lawful ICE operations. She acknowledged that federal partners, including the DEA and U.S. Marshals regularly collaborate with local police. When residents asked whether ICE agents could operate wearing masks despite Ohio’s anti mask law, Elliott’s silence was interpreted as confirmation.
“You all want people to know their rights, just not from ICE,” one attendee shouted, as tensions rose.
With such silences, assurances fell short.
“They tell us to follow one rule, then they come back with another rule,” said Louisette Déristin, who has lived in Springfield for a year. “How can we be safe if we don’t even understand what protection we still have?”
Schools brace for disruptions
Dr. Robert Hill, CEO of Springfield City School District, reported that counselors are available, but there’s no coordinated mental health strategy yet to support students whose parents are deported. Procedures are also in place to minimize disruptions if ICE comes to the school to detain a student.
An audience member asked whether counselors and teachers were receiving training to support Haitian students as February approaches. Hill’s response, “no” sparked visible frustration.
Pastor Carl Ruby of Central Christian Church warned that Ohio’s House Bill 26 would require local officers to enforce federal immigration law, dramatically altering police community relations. Senate Bill 172, he said, could allow warrantless arrests in public spaces like hospitals and courts.
“These proposals would fundamentally change how our community interacts with law enforcement,” he said.
Haitian resident Cherubin François Deli found the lack of clear guidance from officials more frustrating,
“We came here to build a life, not to hide,” he said. “Every agency tells us something different. We need the truth so we know how to protect our families.”
Advocates call for action now
Bisker’s was among the most impassioned voices, and she delivered a blistering critique of officials’ responses. Bisker, a retiree active with her church, said she is tired of “non-answers” from local and federal representatives. She accused elected officials of failing to push back against harmful federal incursions and ignoring Haitian residents’ constitutional rights.
“What are we supposed to do when someone shows up with a mask claiming authority?” she said. “No one told us.”
Bisker said she plans to take action daily for the next two months alongside Pastor Ruby, including passing out “know your rights’ literature translated to Creole to Haitians.
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“Love is a verb,” Ruby said. “Kindness requires action. Not speeches.”
Denise Williams, president of the Springfield NAACP, cautioned that while some non-Haitian residents still speak of ICE enforcement actions as hypothetical or coming in February, “they are already here.”
Williams stressed the importance of residents understanding what to expect during encounters with federal agents. She also recommended that individuals carry identification to help ensure calmer, safer, and better-informed interactions should ICE intervene.
Nowhere for Haitians to go
Under the new federal policy, Haitian TPS holders nationwide are expected to face deportation unless they depart voluntarily in exchange for a $1,000 stipend and a seat on a U.S. chartered flight. Despite the State Department still warning Americans not to travel to Haiti due to extreme violence and government collapse, the federal authorities insist Haitians cannot stay under that designation any longer because it is meant to be temporary, but Haiti’s current disastrous conditions are not.
Advocates say the contradiction is staggering.
“How can the U.S. deem Haiti too dangerous for its own citizens yet safe enough to deport Haitian families back to,” one attendee asked, echoing widespread confusion.
Viles Dorsainvil, co-founder and executive director of the Haitian Support Center, said Haitians also had no good options if deported. In answer to an attendee’s question about Haitians going back to other countries they came from, like Chile and Brazil, Dorsainvil explained that borders have tightened across the region.
“Many who are deported from the U.S. are deported again by those countries and sent back to Haiti,” he said. “For those trying to help, understanding these policies is not easy.”
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