Haitians in Ohio find solidarity at church after chaotic week of false pet-eating claims

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio (AP) — For many Haitian immigrants, Sunday mornings in Springfield, Ohio, are spent joyfully worshipping God as they sing and pray in their native Creole. Their community is reeling — confused, frustrated, hurt — from false accusations that they are eating their neighbor’s cats and dogs. “Jesus is with us in truth, and the truth is that Haitians are not eating pets and geese in Springfield,” said the Rev. “It is truth that a retraction of these rumors will help to restore peace in Springfield,” Ruby said. “We respectfully call on all politicians and media figures who are promoting this rumor to help make Springfield great and safe again by speaking the truth about our community.” Viles Dorsainvil, the leader of Haitian Community Help and Support Center in Springfield, accepted Ruby’s invitation to worship together at Central Christian, and was grateful to be relying on his faith. “It’s important to be here because we’re Christian — despite everything, we worship in good times and bad times,” he said. It’s therapeutic.” Carl Ruby, pastor at Central Christian Church, hugs Lindsay Aime during service, on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Springfield, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jessie Wardarski) And he had a message for Trump and Vance: “If they have the heart of God, they will think differently and speak differently.” The rumors, spread on social media and by Trump during Tuesday’s televised presidential debate against Vice President Kamala Harris, have exacerbated fears about division and anti-immigrant sentiment ahead of the election in the mostly white, blue-collar city of about 59,000 where more than 15,000 Haitians now live and work. Thousands of temporary Haitian migrants have legally landed in Springfield in recent years under the U.S.’s Temporary Protected Status program, as longstanding unrest in their home country has given way to violent gangs ruling the streets. On ABC’s “This Week,” DeWine called the Haitians good, hardworking people who are in the U.S. legally, and said the false rumors are a piece of internet garbage. “There’s no evidence of this at all,” he said during the program. Central Christian Church congregants stand to applaud members of the Haitian community during service, on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Springfield, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jessie Wardarski) Despite the governor and local officials debunking the rumors, Vance reiterated the conspiracy theory on Sunday’s “Face the Nation” on CBS while blasting Harris on her U.S.-Mexico border policy. At Central Christian Church, Ruby encouraged his congregation to help hand out thousands of cards around Springfield that had been printed in Creole and English with a message of support for Haitians. Looking at the Haitian members in the first pew and at the rest of his congregation, he asked them to come together in prayer: “Pray and think what it is to be a Haitian parent sending their child this week to school.” One of those parents is Mia Perez, 35 an immigration lawyer whose 9-year-old daughter had to evacuate her school twice because of bomb threats to a nearby DMV this week. How does the cat taste?” Perez said, describing her daughter’s distress. What’s happening?’” “This is a conversation that I was not ready to have with my daughter,” Perez said. “I felt disrespected of our culture.” On Sunday, Perez attended a service at Saint Raphael’s Catholic church, while a Springfield police officer stood guard outside. Attendance by Haitians was lower than usual, and Perez — after talking with others who did attend — said many from their community stayed away out of fears for their safety, “This is emotional,” she said. Catholic Haitian people have such strong faith — not even hurricanes can keep them away, but look at this here today.” Another service was held at The First Haitian Church, located next to the Haitian Community Center. “Even in the school system sometimes, they feel different, not because of their skin color but because they’re Haitian. But the reality is that we’re beautiful and we’re blessed.” Though she worries about repercussions of the false statements, she said gathering to worship with her community and feeling support from others in Springfield gives her hope. “This time the city of Springfield, Haitian people, asked the Lord to stay together to fight for good … America is a great loving country, and American people care for people – it doesn’t matter if they are Haitian. We’re against lies.” After the service, some parishioners gathered at Rose Goute Creole restaurant for a traditional Haitian meal of rice and beans, fried plantains and pork. “We’ve been outnumbered — we have more non-Haitian guests here at the restaurant who are curious to know the culture and Haitian cuisine,” he said. “We feel that they’re sending a strong message: if they’re here eating with us because they trust us.” Among those attending the earlier service at Central Christian was Rose-Thamar Joseph, 40, who works at the Haitian Community Center. “I was praying for peace and protection — for the Haitian community and all of Springfield,” she said. – This Summarize was created by Neural News AI (V1). Source: https://apnews.com/aa7827f1236f207c9f64ae07096e3977