‘We need to meet face-to-face’
Heck feels social media has changed the way the public views engagement with their government, he said.
“Social media has changed this dynamic where people think that’s where engagement happens, and frankly, it is detrimental to our society and things need to change,” Heck said. “We need to meet face-to-face. We need to have conversations. We need to have dialogue, not hiding behind keyboards. ... It’s become ugly, and, frankly, I’ve felt it.”
The city manager said he can handle the attacks but many have involved his family. He said he has been yelled at across the parking lot of stores in Springfield with his wife.
“I’ll have a conversation with you, you can tell me what I’ve done wrong; you can yell at me. Don’t bring my family into it,” Heck said. “We need to change the civility of our community. We need to change the way we converse. We don’t always have to agree, but that doesn’t mean we get angry and yell and shout at each other. That’s just not the way we should do business.”
Resident complaints
In meetings and on social media, some residents have said they feel rules are too restrictive and don’t allow for an active dialogue. Many have requested town hall meetings to have back-and-forth conversations.
A public Facebook page was recently created specifically to respond to the city’s social media posts, since the city disallows any commenting. This became the practice when the city was the subject of international attention.
Some of the rules and restrictions were implemented after meetings grew contentious, Mayor Rob Rue said.
“When we have a three-minute opportunity for people to speak, and we don’t go back and forth, there’s a reason for that, because it was quite a mess for a long time,” Rue said. “It’d be nice to relax some of the rules. At the same time, they’re guidelines so we can have constructive dialogue in here.”
Credit: Bill Lackey
Credit: Bill Lackey
Some are unsatisfied with the level of back-and-forth permitted at meetings, like Darlene Yeley, who spoke about panhandling and asked why the city law barring the practice was removed. When City Law Director Jill Allen responded after all public comments were finished, saying a federal court ruled panhandling is allowed by the First Amendment, Yeley inquired how to “get that changed because it is dangerous.”
Rue told Yeley she was not allowed to speak after her allotted time, and Heck said he would get her information outside of the meeting. Yeley became upset that her questions would not be immediately answered and left the meeting.
How did we get here?
City commission meetings became a regular forum for angry residents in 2023 after an 11-year-old was killed when a minivan driver struck his school bus August of that year.
Aiden Clark was killed the morning of Aug. 22, 2023, when a 2010 Honda Odyssey driven by Haitian immigrant Hermanio Joseph, 36, went left of center in the 4100 block of Troy Road (Ohio State Route 41) at Lawrenceville and into the path of the oncoming school bus.
The bus driver tried to avoid the Honda by driving onto the shoulder, but the bus still collided with the minivan. The bus and van went off the side of the road, with the bus rolling over.
Joseph was sentenced to 9 to 13.5 years in prison for the crash on first-degree felony involuntary manslaughter and fourth-degree felony vehicular homicide. Joseph has since been used as a rallying cry for anti-immigrant rhetoric. Joseph had an Ohio ID card and testified during the trial that he was in Springfield on Temporary Protected Status, a legal immigration status.
Many people at ensuing city commission meetings shared anti-immigrant sentiment or asked for the removal of Haitian immigrants. Many more expressed concerns about an uptick in car crashes and people driving without licenses.
The Springfield NAACP held a public forum in August 2024 intended to address racism and discrimination against Haitian immigrant and Black Springfield residents. Earlier that month, 12 people carrying swastika flags and guns while wearing ski masks walked around downtown Springfield during the Jazz & Blues Fest, espousing racist views, particularly against the Haitian population.
The city moved its public comment section from the end of meetings to the beginning in July 2024 and the following month, commissioners began sharing their comments immediately following this.
Last year, neo-Nazi white supremacist group the Blood Tribe began a “months-long campaign of harassment and intimidation” of the city and its residents because of its Haitian population, the city alleges in a federal court case against the hate group.
Credit: Bill Lackey
Credit: Bill Lackey
Then in September 2024, the city was thrust into the national spotlight in September after national Republican political figures spread false rumors about Haitian immigrants eating pets.
At a regular city meeting following this, several longtime regular speakers suggested city officials brought the flood of bomb threats and threatening calls of the past two weeks on themselves by failing to listen to citizens’ concerns and dismissing their comments as racially motivated. Many also expressed support for the Haitian community and city leaders as they addressed associated challenges and rhetoric.
Many meetings met the capacity limit for the City Hall Forum, forcing some later arrivals to sit outside on the City Hall plaza.
In October 2024, the city changed its rules to only allow Clark County residents to participate in public comment. All speakers must complete a comment card and present proof of residence like an ID or driver’s license.
Residents are encouraged to attend city meetings, as well as reach out to commissioners to share their feedback. Individual emails and the commission’s phone number are listed at springfieldohio.gov/city-of-springfield-ohio-commission/. The city manager’s office can be reached at 937-324-7300.
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