“They never knew that they would have been somewhere in America that would bring that memory back to them, and it’s a very serious thing to hear them saying that,” Dorsainvil said.
This is also similar to late 2024, when bomb threats to many of the same places led to multiple days of schools dismissing early and evacuations. Springfield was subject to national attention after baseless rumors that Haitian residents were eating people’s pets went viral. These were amplified by prominent Republican figures, including now President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
Emailed bomb threats were sent Monday to several downtown Springfield public offices and the Springfield City School District that referenced pipe bombs and said Haitian immigrants should be gone from the city, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said at a press conference Monday.
Those threats led to road closures downtown and early dismissal for all Springfield City School District students on Monday. All district buildings are now subject to law enforcement sweeps before and after school, the district announced Monday.
A second round of bomb threats was sent to Clark State College, Wittenberg University and the Clark County Department of Job and Family Services on Tuesday.
Clark County Sheriff Chris Clark said in a statement Monday that threats appeared to originate from overseas, which is similar to what transpired in 2024.
More unsubstantiated threats were sent to at least three houses of worship Wednesday — St. John Missionary Baptist Church, Christ Episcopal Church and Temple Sholom.
Springfield is home to an estimated 10-15,000 Haitians, many of whom have legal protections under Temporary Protected Status.
The Trump administration attempted to end TPS after Feb. 3, but that was blocked by a U.S. District Court judge, who also ruled against the government’s request to allow the termination to go into affect while the case is appealed.
According to the United Nations, more than 1.4 million Haitians have been internally displaced due to gang violence and political instability. Haiti’s last elected president was assassinated in 2021 and the country is now being run by an interim transitional government led by Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé.
More than 60% of Haiti’s nearly 12 million people live on less than $4 a day, and hundreds of thousands of Haitians are starving or nearing starvation.
Gangs control an estimated 90% of Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital, and they have seized swaths of land in the country’s central region.
More than 8,100 killings were reported across Haiti from January to November last year, “with figures likely underreported owing to limited access to gang-controlled areas,” according to the U.N. report.
The U.N. estimates that 30% to 50% of members of armed groups are children, with some as young as 9 years old being recruited.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
RECENT LOCAL HAITI TPS COVERAGE
- Haiti TPS: Judge denies stay request, says DHS has Springfield TPS holders’ addresses
- Springfield City Commission meeting draws calls for unity
- Attorneys for Haitians push back on DHS request to let protections expire as case continues
- 3 Springfield houses of worship receive bomb threats
- Churches may help house thousands of Springfield children left behind if TPS expires
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