SPRINGFIELD — Thousands of Haitian immigrants in Clark County are set to lose their temporary ability to stay in the United States legally next week.
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News Center 7 has been covering the changes we could see in that part of the Miami Valley because of this for months.
>>RELATED: I-TEAM: Child welfare system concerns loom with Haitian temporary legal status set to expire in days
Over the last three weeks, the News Center 7 I-Team’s lead investigative reporter, John Bedell, spent time in Springfield. That’s where he learned there are concerns about impacts on the workforce and the local economy due to the upcoming immigration deadline.
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Inside Keket Bongou Caribbean Restaurant in Springfield, the I-Team met with owner Ketlie Moise.
“I got a lot of food,” Moise said with a laugh. “Caribbean food. I got Haitian food. I mix it because I have pasta, rice and beans, legumes, Lalo, I got a lot of food.”
The food she serves is hot. But Moise says business at her restaurant has been cooling down.
“We’re not really busy,” Moise told the I-Team. “Not really. (For a) long time it was busy. But now? Pssh.”
As it stands, Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, for Haitians allows immigrants from that country with that status to be in the U.S. legally. But the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced in November that TPS for Haitians is set to expire after February 3. The move means Haitians who only have TPS as an immigration designation will have the temporary legal status that comes with that designation revoked.
Moise told the I-Team ahead of the deadline currently in place, many of her fellow Haitian immigrants have been leaving Springfield before their TPS expires. They’ve self-deported.
“(They’ve gone to countries like) Mexico, Brazil, Canada, somewhere else,” Moise said. “A lot of people (have) gone.”
An estimated more than 10,000 Haitian immigrants have moved to Springfield and Clark County in recent years.
Last week, the I-Team talked to Ohio Governor Mike DeWine in a one-on-one interview. The governor expressed concerns about what the TPS expiration deadline could mean for the local economy.
“These are people who are working every day and then you take them out and they stop working,” DeWine said. “That certainly does not help the economy at all.”
DeWine told the I-Team he has previously met with representatives from McGregor Metal, Dole, and Topre America, among others, who have all employed Haitian immigrants.
The I-Team called Topre America for comment twice, but as of publication, has not heard back from the company.
Bedell stopped by McGregor Metal earlier this month. A representative there told him the company was not interested in commenting.
“We will not discuss the specifics of immigration-related rulings or effects on the company’s workforce,” Barbara Hines, a representative for Dole told the I-Team in part of an emailed statement. “However, we want to stress that (we) care for and support all our employees and communities, regardless of origin. Further, we do not anticipate negative impacts on our ability to deliver product from the Springfield, Ohio facility.”
The I-Team reached out to the Clark County Board of Commissioners for comment but has not heard back as of yet.
“I think what you see is because we knew this date is coming, and these companies have known for some time that February 3rd is coming, they are adjusting,” DeWine said.
When Bedell stopped by the Greater Springfield Partnership, which is the chamber of commerce in Springfield, to ask about economic impact from the expiring TPS deadline, a representative there told the I-Team the organization would be making “no public comments” on the topic.
At Springfield City Hall, city officials refused to speak to the I-Team on camera.
“The City of Springfield is aware of concerns being raised about the potential workforce and economic implications tied to the possible expiration of Temporary Protected Status (TPS),” City of Springfield Communications Director Karen Graves told the I-Team in an emailed statement. “However, at this time, the City does not have reliable, localized data that would allow us to quantify or project specific economic impacts. Workforce participation, employment sectors, and individual immigration outcomes vary widely, and without verified information on how many individuals may be affected or what actions may follow at the federal level, any estimate would be speculative. The City continues to monitor the situation and remains focused on supporting overall economic stability and workforce needs using the information currently available.”
Over the last three weeks, the I-Team has reached out to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at least five times through phone calls and emails, looking for comment. As of publication, the agency has not responded with a comment.
“I think there are so many Haitians in town with a more solid status – a more permanent (immigration) status here,” Haitian Community Help & Support Center President Viles Dorsainvil told the I-Team. “We do not have only TPS holders in Springfield.”
Economics aside, many Haitians are facing uncertain futures in Springfield.
“I think they are fearful,” Dorsainvil told the I-Team. “They have a lot of anxiety and uncertainty as well. They feel uncertain when it comes to their future. And they feel that way not because they do not want to go back to their home country, but they feel that way because they know that their home country is not doing well. I mean, the same situation that pushed them to leave the country, (is) still there.”
“I feel bad, but I stay,” Moise said of the approaching TPS expiration deadline while sitting in the dining room of her restaurant. “I choose that because I have my business here, I have my house, I have two businesses here. I stay.”
As of publication of this report, there are several legal battles in federal courts challenging the cancellation of TPS for one million Haitians and Venezuelans. A federal appeals judge heard oral arguments in one of the cases on January 14.
News Center 7 will continue following this story. That includes tracking and reporting what federal courts decide in the cases challenging the cancellation of TPS for Haitians and whether there’s an extension of the current TPS expiration deadline.
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