Slightly more than half felt the end of TPS will bad for the city. They expressed concern for the Haitian community, saying TPS should be extended and expressed profound fear of what could happen if Immigration and Customs Enforcement rolls into town on a mass deportation campaign.
“They (the Haitians) are our neighbors. I am saddened by the government response and afraid of the impending ICE invasion,” said one German Twp. woman.
“TPS should be extended,” said a Pike Twp. resident. “Haiti is not safe to return to, not by a long shot. I am terrified of Springfield having even a shadow of what has happened in Minneapolis.”
A just slightly smaller number felt the end of TPS will be good for Springfield. Many expressed support for the end of a program that was mean to be “temporary” and hope that aggressive immigration enforcement would help alleviate their economic strain by bringing down rent prices or increasing wages or job opportunities.
“As a Springfield resident, my insurance rates will go down, the housing market will be forced to adjust, reducing rents for those whom rent homes. Lines will be shorter at the grocery chains,” said a Springfield man. “Law Enforcement will no longer be over stressed. Our infrastructure will see a return to previous levels of maintenance and costs. In short, the removal of TPS immigrants will allow our community to return to normal.”
The Dayton Daily News/Springfield News-Sun survey is non-scientific, but it illustrates the conflicting views of residents in a city shoved into the center of the national immigration debate.
Clark County voters supported President Donald Trump in the 2024 election with 64% of the vote after Trump vowed to start “the largest deportation in the history of our country” in Springfield and echoed false rumors about Haitian residents eating pets.
The sudden increase in the city’s Haitian population in recent years came with well-documented challenges. The state of Ohio put resources into driver education, increasing public health services to cut down on wait times, and providing translation and English-language training.
“It will be nice to get our city back,” said a Springfield Twp. resident. “Driving through the city again without concern of foreigners who don’t understand the signage or rules of the road.”
But they have also invested in the community, opened businesses and paid taxes.
“I believe the loss of the Haitians will be disastrous to Springfield,” said a Springfield woman. “They are workers who pay taxes. Good family-oriented people who want to assimilate and raise their children in a safe place.”
Crime, violence concerns
Some expressed support for the Haitian community while also supporting the removal of actual criminals.
“If there are a couple hard core criminals, then yes, remove them. Know their names and find them. My guess is there’s less than a dozen here,” said a German Twp. resident who supports extending TPS.
A number of respondents who support the end of TPS brought up crime as a reason. Clark County Prosecutor Dan Driscoll told the News-Sun this week that Haitians are no more likely to be charged with a violent crime than the general population.
“We have not seen many, if any Haitians charged with violent crimes against individuals from outside of the Haitian community,” he said.
He noted the tragic, August 2023 crash with a Northwestern Local Schools bus that led to involuntary manslaughter and vehicular homicide convictions against a Haitian driver; and a domestic related murder/suicide in January 2025 involving a Haitian family.
“Outside of these two incidents our contact with the Haitian community has been in large part as victims of crime,” Driscoll said.
Even among those who support the end of TPS, there is concern about what may happen if there is a large immigration enforcement effort. Violent clashes between federal agents and protesters has left people injured and dead in other cities.
“My hope is more for the protesting individuals who could be putting themselves in a precarious situation,” said a Mad River Twp. man who expressed “relief” with the end of TPS. “I hope they protest peacefully so we don’t repeat recent unfortunate events.”
“Don’t send your ICE goons, who are undertrained and unskilled. Which is why they are murdering people,” said a Moorefield Twp. woman.
Nuanced perspective
Some survey respondents expressed views that were more nuanced. One of those was Ross McGregor, an employer, rental property owner and former politician in the Springfield area.
“I hope that whatever actions are taken they will be done with due process and dignity,” wrote McGregor, a Republican who represented Springfield in the Ohio House of Representatives for nearly a decade.
In a follow-up interview with this news outlet, McGregor conceded that thousands of people leaving the city either by choice or force could drive down rent and property prices.
“It’s the law of supply and demand,” he said.
But just as a sudden population increase led to challenges for the community when the Haitians arrived, a sudden population loss would erode the tax base – impacting government services – and could exacerbate vacant and delinquent properties.
“I think it will be bad for the community at a high level,” McGregor said in the interview, noting the challenges the community overcame to deal with the rapid population growth. “I think at this point, a lot of that happened, and the Haitian community has really stepped up to trying to become integrated into the cultural norms of Springfield.”
The loss in population would likely lead to lost jobs as businesses that serve that population close, but McGregor doesn’t expect it will raise wages. He said area employers already see a shortage of qualified workers that would only get worse if a large number of people lost their work permits.
“I know of no one who pay the Haitians any less than they would pay any person that worked for them,” he said.
‘Temporary doesn’t mean forever!’
That said, McGregor notes that Haitian immigrants have long known that TPS is temporary, and should have taken steps to secure more permanent status.
“The end of the TPS program has been known for some time,” he said.
This was noted by many people who support the end of TPS: “Temporary doesn’t mean forever!” wrote one Springfield respondent, echoing the sentiment of many others.
This news outlet reached out to Advocates for Basic Legal Equality and asked about that. Those on TPS have long known the program was going to expire. Why haven’t they sought permanent status?
“They are seeking permanent status,” said Katie Kersh, a senior attorney with ABLE in Dayton who estimates her organization alone has helped Haitian families with hundreds of asylum applications. “Asylum is a permanent status, but the courts take a very long time to process claims.”
But she noted pathways for citizenship and legal residency were already limited for Haitians, and were closed off even more by the Trump administration.
“Our system is not set up to help people stay in the country lawfully contrary to popular belief,” Kersh said.
A New Carlisle woman’s response to this news outlet’s survey touched on both sides of the issue.
“Temporary status is just that, temporary,” she said, adding: “I find the situation rather sad for the Haitians. They were invited here, encouraged to stay, got great jobs and trying to make Springfield their home.”
DIG INTO OUR HAITIAN COVERAGE
Clark County Sheriff’s Office to ‘maintain the peace’ as TPS ends, will not enforce immigration laws
WATCH: Haitian restaurant in Springfield struggles as federal protections near expiration
• What’s coming?: After some initially warned of an anticipated 30-day ICE surge following the end of TPS, school and state officials stressed they have had no direct communication with the feds about potential enforcement actions, but they are preparing for the possibility.
• A community in fear: Reporter Cornelius Frolik traveled the streets of Springfield with a translator and spoke to more than a dozen Haitian people living and working in the Springfield area. Most of them expressed feelings of uncertainty and dread about the TPS cancellation.
• Lawsuits: Area Haitians on TPS are pinning their hopes on a couple of lawsuits that challenge the legality of the federal government’s decision to cancel the TPS designation for Haiti. Here are the details on those lawsuits, including one involving a Springfield man.
• Keket: Our reporters sat down with a local restaurant owner concerned that immigration enforcement fears could close her business. Her compelling personal story is captured in writing and video here.
• Residents prepare: More than 80 people took part in an educational event at Zion Hill Baptist Church in Springfield Thursday evening, learning about their rights and those of their neighbors regardless of immigration status.
• Law enforcement: Local law enforcement officials say they will work to “maintain the peace” amid any ICE surge, but they won’t enforce federal immigration law.
• City leaders: The Springfield City Commission unanimously passed a resolution asking federal immigration agents to follow local rules when conducting enforcement activities.
• Politicians react: Our statehouse reporter Avery Kreemer reached out to politicians who represent Dayton and Springfield at the state and national level about their views on ending TPS and an ICE surge. Read that story here.
• How we got here: We have been reporting on the growth of the Haitian population in Springfield and its effect on the community for years. This story from the archive explains why so many Haitians relocated to Springfield, Ohio.
• Community survey: In addition to reporters interviewing residents on the street, we created an online survey to gather community perspective. I’ll have a summary of responses in an upcoming story.
• Dayton action: Several Dayton restaurants and other businesses closed Friday and hundreds of people gathered in front of U.S. Rep. Mike Turner’s Dayton office as part of the nationwide protest of ICE operations.
• Springfield City Hall, school, county hit by threats tied to Haitian immigration concerns
• VIDEO: What to know about Haitian immigration in Springfield
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