SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — It’s been two weeks since false claims were made about Haitian immigrants in Springfield and still, families and city leaders are being overwhelmed with threats and harassment. Now they're faced with racist, hate-filled messages spreading around town.
The fliers are the latest in a series of harassing messages and threats. It has some Haitians leaving town, while the city's mayor said they're doing something about it.
Some Haitians in the community said they’ve been finding racist fliers on cars and online. Viles Dorsainvil was one of them.
“It has created in anxiety and fear, and it's a really a painful thing to see," said Dorsainvil.
He’s the executive director at the Haitian Community Center in Springfield. He said some Haitians are leaving the city, but not just because of the fliers, but because of mounting threats like it targeting Haitians.
“Some of the Haitians houses have been vandalized by some of the folks and they call and they normally ask us what we can do for follow up," said Dorsainvil.
Now it’s not just Haitians who are being targeted.
“There's been death threats and threats against my family by name and everything," said Springfield Mayor Rob Rue.
Rue said on top of the hate fliers and bomb threats to the city, he’s been getting threats blaming him for the influx of Haitian immigrants.
“There was no indication or no communication to our city government that there was a large amount of people moving into our community in a short amount of time," said Rue.
Now that Haitians are in Springfield, Rue said the city is not going to tolerate threats.
In fact, he said, they are actively taking action against it and is using city dollars to bring in extra security while calling for peace.
“We need help, not hate and we need those that with a national stage to understand the weight of their words," said Rue.
Back at the Haitian Community Center, they’re working with police too when they get reports in an effort to put an end to it.
“We are here just to work and and try to help boosting the economy of of the community, we are here to find a safer place to raise our family," said Dorsainvil.
The mayor said individuals can report it to city offices or the police department if they come across one of the racist fliers, and they will try to get to the bottom of it, but right now they are focused on trying to keep the community safe with extra security.
The mayor said he has not been in touch with former President Donald Trump or his running mate J.D. Vance since they made the false claims about Haitians in Springfield.
However, the mayor said the city is getting help with resources from the state and Gov. Mike DeWine’s office.