SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — The nation became focused on Springfield, Ohio during the presidential debate when former President Donald Trump claimed immigrants were eating people’s pets.
“In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs. The people that came in. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating, they’re eating the pets,” Trump said.
People also shared video of an Ohio woman accused of killing and eating a cat.
Police body camera video showed officers arresting the woman but this also did not happen in Springfield. The incident happened hours away in Canton, Ohio.
The woman arrested is also not an immigrant. She was born in Ohio and graduated from Canton’s McKinley High School in 2015, according to public records and newspaper reports the Associated Press reviewed.
A photo pulled from a Reddit post fueled the rumors, claiming a man was carrying what looked like a goose in Springfield. The photo was actually taken in Columbus, Ohio about 45 miles away.
Even before the debate, Springfield worked to discredit the rumors with the following statement:
“In response to recent rumors alleging criminal activity by the immigrant population in our city, we wish to clarify that there have been no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community. Additionally, there have been no verified instances of immigrants engaging in illegal activities such as squatting or littering in front of residents’ homes. Furthermore, no reports have been made regarding members of the immigrant community deliberately disrupting traffic.”
The influx of immigrants has strained city services.
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For months, our sister station, WHIO-TV has covered the impact of nearly 15,000 Haitian immigrants moving to Springfield.
City leaders begged for state and federal support to help with police, and fire services, schools, healthcare, and translation services, along with problems with unlicensed or uneducated drivers.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine is now involved. He ordered extra Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers and cruisers to help Springfield Police officers with traffic problems.
DeWine also asked the Ohio Department of Health to increase primary care services in the city.
“I have great confidence in the people of Springfield. They are not anti-Haitian. They are just seeing problems and they want elected officials do everything we can to help alleviate those problems,” DeWine said.
The school system is also making adjustments to help with the influx of students. Springfield City Schools said this year it has more than 1,600 non-English-Speaking students in its district. That’s up from 250 in 2018.
The district added a dual language program, now has 18 English-as-a-second language teachers and hired eight bilingual assistants to help overcome the language barrier.
People in Springfield are feeling the stress.
“Just walking around, praying for my city,” said Bonnie Johnson of Springfield.
“There’s a lot of people I know that really are upset about it,” added Carolyn Dunn.
“We are resilient people. Hardworking people. And, I think we have a lot to offer to this community here,” Haitian immigrant Viles Dorsainvil said.
So why are there so many Haitian immigrants in Springfield? The city says many of the immigrants are in the United States legally under temporary protected status.
That status gives migrants from countries considered unsafe because of things like wars or disasters the right to live and work in the U.S.
The city of Springfield said Haitian immigrants settled in the city after word spread of the lower cost of living and the availability of jobs.
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