SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — Residents of a southwestern, suburban Ohio town did not hesitate to blame the Biden-Harris administration and officials all the way down to City Hall for their community’s ongoing migrant crisis.
The people living in Springfield, Ohio, have been subject to extensive national media attention after salacious allegations of Haitian migrants eating pet animals went viral. While locals who spoke to the Daily Caller News Foundation in Springfield this week say they have not witnessed such acts taking place, they do say there is a serious migrant crisis in their community, and they are faulting a slate of political leaders for their woes. (RELATED: Biden Admin Preparing Deportation Protection For Hundreds Of Thousands Of Haitians In The US)
The enormous wave of media attention on Springfield began several days ago when a local social media post claimed a pet cat was found hanging on a tree branch near a Haitian immigrant’s house, and being butchered for consumption. Allegations of Haitians eating pet animals was further amplified when President Donald Trump mentioned the situation during the presidential debate on Tuesday.
While a recording of a phone call to police about Haitians in the town allegedly carrying dead geese has surfaced, Springfield police did issue a statement that they have received no reports of pet animals being eaten. Locals who spoke with the DCNF said they have not witnessed anyone eating pet dogs or cats, but they were quick to say that the arrival of roughly 20,000 Haitian nationals in a few short years has created logistical nightmares for a town of just under 60,000 residents.
‘No Rhyme Or Reason’
“They opened up our borders and are flying them here,” Daryl Summers, a local of Springfield, said of the Biden-Harris administration and his belief that the White House is largely to blame for the crisis his town is experiencing.
Summers noted media reports of around 20,000 Haitians in the town, but he says he personally believes the real number to be substantially higher. He also said he is working on forming a group with other locals to help make sure vulnerable individuals feel more safe when they are out in public.
A local woman who spoke to the DCNF said she now, as a matter of policy, never goes out into the local grocery store without her husband, and she wished not to be identified for fear of any retribution for speaking out about Springfield’s problems.
“What’s going on in our town is being allowed and I think it’s from the governor on down, and I think there’s money involved,” the woman stated. “There’s no rhyme or reason for all this to be happening and for all these people to be brought here without any infrastructure put in place to help them.”
The Springfield, Ohio BMV. DCNF Image.
“I believe the [Haitian migrants] are being used just like the citizens are being used,” she continued.
Another resident was more direct in naming who in the Biden-Harris administration is responsible for Springfield’s woes.
“Obviously Biden, Mayorkas and Harris,” Mark Sanders told the DCNF, referring to President Joe Biden, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Vice President Kamala Harris.
“The border is wide open,” Sanders continued. “Many of the executive orders that were in place when [Biden] took his oath he undid within hours, so he swung the doors open. He created the pathway.”
City Stonewalling
The DCNF first reached out to Springfield’s city manager and the city commissioners on Tuesday via email in order to get answers on the town’s current crisis, but none of them have personally responded, nor have any other public representatives followed up, despite pledges to do so.
“I am responding on behalf of Commissioner Estrop,” Regina Jeffers, the clerk of the city commission, wrote in response to a DCNF media inquiry for City Commissioner David Estrop. “All media requests are being funneled through our Strategic Engagement Manager Karen Graves. I have copied her in this email to provide the statement being issued.”
When asked when exactly Graves would have an opportunity to get in touch, Jeffers said she would “respond as she is able.” However, after several days, there has yet to be a response.
A similar situation occurred when the DCNF attempted to speak to a public representative for the Springfield Police Department. When asked over the phone if the police could confirm whether there has been an uptick in car crashes, an employee again directed the DCNF to Karen Graves. (RELATED: KJP Says Reports Of Haitians Eating Pets In Springfield Are Putting People’s ‘Lives In Danger’)
A follow-up email to Graves about car wreck statistics in the city also went unanswered.
The DCNF visited City Hall in an attempt to find answers in person on Wednesday. However, no elected officials appeared to be present in the building, except for one city employee who wished not to be identified. That individual took the DCNF’s contact information and promised someone would be getting in touch.
The DCNF has not heard back since that visit to City Hall.
Barron’s Super Sandwich. DCNF image.
“Because they’re guilty of things!” Barron Seelig, a local pastor and longtime community activist for the homeless, told the DCNF on Friday when asked about lack of communication from city leaders. “At this point, I think they are criminally liable.”
‘Taking The Jobs And The Houses’
Seelig and numerous other locals who spoke to the DCNF said transportation and economic issues have followed the steep rise in immigration, with housing growing scarce and claims of repeated wrecks — allegedly by Haitian drivers with no licenses.
The local pastor also said the migrant influx has also resulted in economic consequences, affecting him personally.
“I was let go from a company in October,” he said. “They eliminated my position and that company was actively hiring Haitians for temporary services.”
“Haitians are taking the jobs and the houses here,” Seelig continued.
Despite his situation, he says he has absolutely no ill will toward those trying to make a better life and wants to see them thrive — pointing to how he has dedicated his life to helping the homeless in Springfield and serving as a pastor. The argument he made is that a town of fewer than 60,000 simply can’t take in that many migrants in a short amount of time.
He says this outlook has caused racist actors who are not local to the town to call him a “race traitor.” Those individuals, known as Blood Tribe, have been used by others to claim that criticism of the migrant situation to be racist in nature.
After losing his job, Seelig now operates his own business, Mr. Barron’s Super Sandwich, which cooks gourmet soups and sandwiches, and caters big events. The pastor says the mobile food business is now his “sole source of income.”
Snyder Park. Springfield, Ohio. DCNF image
Local Leaders Call For Aid
Before Springfield became nationally known, City Manager Bryan Heck had appealed to the federal government for help on the fledgling housing crisis. The city manager sent a letter to Sens. Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Tim Scott of South Carolina, asking the lawmakers for assistance.
“The City of Springfield, Ohio is facing a significant housing crisis in our community,” Heck wrote. “Many factors have played in to where we are today, but without significant support at the Federal level, I believe, that the situation and the need for housing in our community will become much worse.”
The rise in rental prices appears to reflect a crunch in housing availability.
The median rental price in Springfield spiked by nearly 44% in September compared to 2023, according to the latest Zillow data. The town’s median rental price was $900 in September 2024, but has since skyrocketed to $1,295, marking a sharp increase as Haitian migrants have chosen to take residence there.
While local government leaders haven’t appeared to present a specific plan of action, Republican officials at the state level have pledged to assist.
Although he made clear that he does not oppose the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) that’s given to Haitian nationals in the U.S., GOP Gov. DeWine announced that he would be supporting Springfield with $2.5 million to help alleviate financial pressures the town is facing. Additionally, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced that his office is investigating how to stop the Biden-Harris administration from continuing to settle the migrants into the state.
There have been local elected officials placing blame on the federal government.
During a Clark County Commissioners meeting in July, Commissioner Sasha L. Rittenhouse said that while the local government hears complaints of the Haitian migrant situation, these complaints need to also be directed at Washington, D.C. While everyone sees what’s going on, the “people allowing this to happen are in” the nation’s capital, Rittenhouse said according to county meeting minutes.
In the meantime, Springfield residents like Sanders say the only place where real change can happen is at the ballot box.
“Every town is a border town,” Sanders told the DCNF. “If that’s what you want, then that’s how you should vote in November.”
“The only way we can fix what’s obviously broken is to get the people out of office who’ve been there in the last three-and-a-half years who’ve turned this country upside down,” Sanders warned.
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