Springfield Faces Continued Threats Amid Immigration Controversy
Over the past weekend and extending into Monday, Springfield officials and public buildings have been the target of terroristic threats. Amidst this tense climate, Republican U.S. Senate candidate Bernie Moreno has urged the revocation of protected status for legal Haitian migrants in the city, advocating for their deportation to their violence-stricken homeland.
Located in southwestern Ohio, Springfield has found itself at the center of national political debates. Former President Donald Trump, during a debate last Tuesday, reiterated a false claim that Haitian immigrants in the area were stealing and consuming pets from their neighbors, a statement refuted by public safety officials, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, and even the originator of the rumor on social media.
Echoing similar baseless accusations, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and other GOP officials have suggested that Black immigrants in Springfield have been killing and eating geese, a claim that officials confirmed had no evidence to support it.
The arrival of approximately 12,000 to 15,000 Haitian migrants over the last five years, mostly in search of warehouse and manufacturing jobs, has put a strain on Springfield’s health and education systems. This influx has also ignited a wave of hate, evidenced by a recent march by an armed neo-Nazi group and the distribution of Ku Klux Klan flyers in local neighborhoods.
Since Thursday, bomb threats have led to the evacuation and closure of schools, City Hall, and other public buildings. Two elementary schools were most recently evacuated on Monday due to bomb threats, as reported by WKEF. Governor DeWine noted on Monday that “at least 33” bomb threats had been made.
Public officials have received death threats, and Republican Mayor Rob Rue has attributed the turmoil to the rhetoric of Trump and his running mate, Ohio U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance. “All these federal politicians that have negatively spun our city, they need to know they’re hurting our city, and it was their words that did it,” Rue told WSYX.
Despite Rue’s calls for calm, Trump falsely claimed on Friday that Springfield had been ruined by the immigrants, who are legally in the U.S., and vowed to deport them. On Sunday, Vance appeared on CNN and defended his false statements about Springfield, stating, “If I have to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people, then that’s what I’m going to do.”
Moreno, who is challenging Democratic Ohio U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, visited Springfield on Saturday and called for the deportation of legal immigrants. “What’s happened is that Sherrod Brown and Kamala Harris have waved the magic wand, corrupted our immigration system and shielded them through Temporary Protected Status and asylum — two loopholes in our immigration system that were corrupted by corrupt politicians,” Moreno said, according to the Springfield News-Sun.
Moreno’s spokeswoman, Reagan McCarthy, dismissed concerns that such comments could fuel more hate and threats. She instead criticized the media, linking the issue to an apparent assassination attempt on Trump at his South Florida golf course.
In an email, McCarthy stated, “It is vile that the liberal media is blaming Republicans for these threats in Springfield — with no evidence — when a leftwing lunatic who echoed talking points from Joe Biden and Kamala Harris attempted to assassinate President Trump just yesterday.”
Meanwhile, the situation in Springfield remains volatile. In addition to bomb threats at schools and government buildings, city officials, including Rue and staffers, have also received multiple death threats, as reported by WSYX’s Darrel Rowland on X.
Rue has discouraged possible visits from Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, as noted by Rowland on X.
According to a post by Spectrum News’s Taylor Popielarz, 21 public buildings have been placed on lockdown, evacuated, closed, or searched over the past week due to threats. These include eight educational institutions, four county buildings, three car and driver licensing offices, two health facilities, and two municipal government buildings.
Moreno blames the problems in Springfield on his political opponents rather than on the false claims made by Trump, Vance, or himself. “Kamala Harris and Sherrod Brown wreaked havoc on Springfield with their reckless decision to extend (temporary protected status) and allow thousands of unvetted migrants to resettle in Springfield, with no regard for the devastating effects it would have on the citizens of that community,” McCarthy said.
However, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has documented that people receiving temporary protected status must “undergo and clear robust security vetting.”
Senator Sherrod Brown, whom Moreno is challenging, has called for an end to the politicization of Springfield’s situation. “Springfield reminds me of Mansfield, my hometown,” he said in a Monday post on X. “It’s a proud city with a rich manufacturing history. This community deserves better than to be used as a political pawn. We must work together to keep everyone safe & address the city’s challenges. That’s what I’ll keep doing.”
Lynn Tramonte, director of the Ohio Immigrant Alliance, urged public figures to consider the impact of their rhetoric. “I don’t know how the people peddling lies about immigrants can live with themselves,” she said. “Most Ohioans are horrified at their behavior and its consequences. We choose love, not hate.”
