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Haitian immigrants are reportedly leaving Springfield, Ohio, “in droves” to pre-empt any deportation efforts under a second Trump administration.

The Dayton-area city of Springfield recently came under the national spotlight after Haitian immigrants living there reportedly mistreated animals, both wild and domesticated.

At the debate between President-elect Donald Trump and current border czar Kamala Harris in September, Trump famously asserted that Haitians in Springfield were eating family pets. Springfield residents have also reported horrific mistreatment of area wildlife to local police and their elected leaders.

‘While we understand there are concerns that some of our Haitian immigrants may choose to leave our community in the wake of the election, … Haitian residents who have made community connections … are not leaving their home.’

Nonetheless, Springfield officials repeatedly insisted that they had not received any “credible” reports of animal abuse, and many legacy media outlets have relied on those official denials to characterize Trump’s statements at the debate as “false” and “debunked.”

Springfield citizens and others in Clark County, Ohio, have since signaled their support for Trump’s view of things, voting overwhelmingly earlier this month to send Trump — who made mass deportations a central campaign issue — back to the White House.

In anticipation of Trump’s inauguration in just a few weeks, some Haitian immigrants living in Springfield have already elected to leave the area, ostensibly in hopes of avoiding deportation.

Margery Koveleski, who has spent years helping Haitians settle in Ohio, now finds herself helping them leave, the Guardian reported. “Some folks don’t have credit cards or access to the internet, and they want to buy a bus ticket or a plane ticket, so we help them book a flight,” she said.

Though these Haitians — many of whom are technically in the U.S. legally after the Biden-Harris administration liberally granted Temporary Protected Status to many immigrants who would otherwise be considered illegal — are leaving the Springfield area, they are not necessarily returning to their native country.

“The owner of one store is wondering if he should move back to New York or to Chicago — he says his business is way down,” Koveleski told the Guardian.

Others have mentioned Boston, a logical destination for migrants with dubious immigration status since Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, both far-left Democrats, have already promised to protect illegal aliens from deportation.

Jacob Payen, co-founder of the Haitian Community Alliance, emphasized to the Guardian that Haitians are leaving Springfield as a direct result of Trump’s pledge to deport illegal immigrants. “People are fully aware of the election result, and that is why they are leaving,” he explained. “They are afraid of a mass deportation.”

In a press release issued on Friday, Springfield Mayor Rob Rue did not deny that some Haitians will probably opt to leave the area. However, Rue then also cryptically added that most had established roots and therefore would not be “leaving their home.”

“While we understand there are concerns that some of our Haitian immigrants may choose to leave our community in the wake of the election, as we know it today, Haitian residents who have made community connections whether through church affiliation, property purchases or have been contributing to our City through their employment or business ownership are not leaving their home,” Rue wrote.

After commending Haitians and their manifold “contributions” to Springfield, Rue’s statement added: “The City of Springfield also will continue to comply with the laws and regulations set forth by the federal government. We remain steadfast in our commitment to upholding federal law, as we have always done in the past. As such, we will continue to monitor and await further guidance on this matter as the Federal Administration transitions.”

Blaze News reached out to the City of Springfield to clarify what Rue meant by Haitian migrants’ “home” and his understanding of the federal statute regarding Temporary Protected Status but did not receive a response.

In their respective articles about Haitians leaving Springfield, both the Guardian and CBS News shared stories that painted deportation efforts as inhumane or potentially devastating to the area.

“I’m scared because my business in Haiti was bombed, I lost my mom,” Ketlie Moise, a Haitian immigrant living in Springfield, told CBS News. “Someone come in the business, they shoot my mom with a gun, bomb my business. … If I get deportation to go back to Haiti, for me especially, I’m going to die, I’m going to be dead.”

“Because I work with Haitians to file their taxes — I see their W-2s and so on. If these people leave, that money is gone from the city and the local economy,” Payen told the Guardian.

Indeed, the Guardian noted that “the Haitians who filled thousands of jobs at area packaging and auto plants have helped rejuvenate once-blighted neighborhoods and contributed to the local economy in myriad ways.”

However, the outlet failed to mention that at least one area temp agency, First Diversity, is under fire for allegations of exploitation and even human trafficking, as Blaze News previously reported.

Investigative journalist Asra Nomani reported in the Jewish Journal: “Some of the whistleblowers cried, recounting their experiences working at First Diversity. Workers spoke of paychecks that never arrived, long hours with no overtime and promises of stability that quickly turned to dust. Some, like the 24-year-old woman and her mother, had their Social Security numbers allegedly stolen, while others found their I-9 forms and drug test results faked to keep them in the system.”

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