SPRINGFIELD — Community organizations are working to help prepare Haitians in Springfield for the end of their Temporary Protected Status (TPS).
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As News Center 7 reported Thursday, a federal appeals court blocked the Trump Administration from ending TPS for around 350,000 Haitians across the country on Friday. The ruling extends TPS to Monday, July 27
The ruling impacts thousands of people in Clark County.
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As shown on News Center 7 at 5:00, James Fleurijen has been one of several people at the Haitian Support Center that Haitian immigrants have been turning to for support.
“We have a lot of anxiety, a lot of stress here going on, like people, the fears and all that,” Fleurijen said.
He said some have already lost their jobs since the Supreme Court’s decision, and it’s created a new crisis: trying to get basic needs met.
“They’re not working, so they’re not able to provide to their families and feeding the children,” he said. “This is the situation that we’re facing currently here in Springfield, Ohio.”
Springfield Neighbors United has been trying to help fill that gap, too. The group of volunteers has been helping raise donations.
“With the TPS situation, that need has really increased, and we’re trying to help address some of that extra load,” Marian Steward, of Springfield Neighbors United, said.
The two groups have also been focused on legal support. Springfield Neighbors United has been helping get people to court dates, and the Haitian Support Center has been encouraging people to get their affairs in order.
Stewart said that includes immigrant parents making arrangements for their citizen children.
“So if they are deported or detained, what happens to their children? Who can take care of them because we don’t want them in the system that does not have that capacity to handle them to start with,” she said.
Both organizations say there is a lot of uncertainty about what happens in Springfield come Monday, but they’re focused on the facts of the situation and helping people meet their needs.
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