Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, turn to faith amid deportation fears
Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, turn to faith amid deportation fears
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At the end of his Sunday service, the pastor of the First Haitian Evangelical Church of Springfield, Ohio, asked ushers and musicians to form a circle around him as he knelt in prayer, flanked by the flags of Haiti and the United States. Many had come to receive his blessing and hear his guidance on how to deal with federal agents in case of raids stemming from President Donald Trump's crackdown on immigration. Other congregants stayed home out of fear and growing uncertainty.
“I asked God to protect my people,” the Rev. Reginald Silencieux said after the service, reflecting on his final prayer. “I prayed especially for the Haitian community, and I prayed for U.S.A. too, because Trump is our president. As a church, we have an obligation to pray for him because he’s our political leader right now.”.
Some of Springfield's estimated 15,000 Haitians are seeking solace and divine intervention in their churches or at shops that sell spiritual products. Community leaders say many are overwhelmed by fears Trump will end or let expire the Temporary Protected Status program that allows them to remain in the U.S. legally.
“The community is panicking.” said Viles Dorsainvil, the leader of Springfield's Haitian Community Help and Support Center. “They see the arrests on TV in other parts of the country and they don’t know what’s going to happen.”. Last year, Trump falsely accused Haitians in Springfield of eating their neighbor’s cats and dogs. The false rumors exacerbated fears about division and anti-immigrant sentiment in the mostly white, blue-collar city of about 59,000.
