‘Another chapter in our journey’: Springfield Haitian community, faith leader await SCOTUS TPS decision | Local
A customer leaves after getting food from Rose Goute Creole Restaurant, a Haitian-owned business, on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Springfield.
As Springfield faith leaders anticipate a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court on Temporary Protected Status for Haitians, they worry the government used an improper process to make that decision.
Newly discovered behind-the-scenes communications reveal that subject matter experts within the Department of Homeland Security recommended extending Haiti’s TPS before then-DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced she would cancel the designation, according to new filings by counsel for Haitian TPS holders.
“This new evidence raises profound concerns about the integrity of the process that put our Haitian neighbors at risk,” said Carl Ruby, director of Springfield G92, a network of churches that supports Haitian families in the region. “Springfield is home to one of the largest Haitian communities in Ohio. Haitian TPS holders are our coworkers, our church members, our dear friends. What happens in this case will shape the future of our city, and the process was tarnished by deception and animus toward Haitians from the very beginning.”
The Supreme Court is expected to issue a ruling in the case by early July. A decision could come any day now.
Springfield G92 said in a release that documents show DHS “misrepresented the existence of a safety assessment regarding conditions in Haiti.” When DHS consulted the State Department, “DHS itself advised that conditions in Haiti were not safe and recommended extending TPS. Despite this, DHS later claimed publicly — and in court filings — that it had conducted a study concluding that Haiti was safe for return.”
But, regardless of the ruling, Haitian Community Help and Support Center President Vilès Dorsainvil said he expects the Trump administration will do whatever it can to make life difficult for Haitian immigrants in an effort to encourage them to leave the county on their own.
“From the time they took office, I think their goal was to make the lives of the immigrants so miserable that they can self-deport,” Dorsainvil said.
Already Dorsainvil said things are very difficult, pointing to an instance in which someone he knows received a notice for a court hearing, dated June 8 and postmarked June 9, on June 12 — the day the hearing was scheduled. People who miss immigration court dates are often placed into removal proceedings.
He said he sees a potential for the Supreme Court to extend TPS for a three- to six-month period before allowing it to end, which would once again put many in the community in a state of “limbo,” as was the case when TPS was set to end in February before a federal judge struck that decision. That is now being appealed to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in late April for the case, which has the potential to impact more than 330,000 Haitian nationals living in the United States, including thousands of residents in the Springfield area.
Geoff Pipoly, lead counsel for Haitian TPS holders, filed a motion Tuesday, June 16, that asks the highest court in the land to dismiss the government’s petition as improvidently granted — a type of filing also known as a DIG request.
The motion says new internal DHS documents show that Noem did not consult with the State Department before she decided to terminate Haiti’s TPS. Plaintiffs’ attorneys say the DHS secretary by statute is required to consult relevant agencies to determine country conditions before making any TPS determination. They allege Noem knowingly made a false statement when she claimed she had consulted with the State Department.
The federal government has argued that Noem engaged in consultation before reaching a decision.
Springfield G92 members are praying for “a positive decision” and are expecting a ruling anytime between Thursday, June 18 and July.
Pipoly told the News-Sun previously that the Supreme Court should dismiss the appeal and send it back to the trial court while more facts are discovered.
Springfield G92 plans to hold a rally on City Hall Plaza at 6 p.m. the day the Supreme Court issues a decision. If TPS is extended, the group said there will “be a celebration of safety and stability for Haitian families,” and if the status ends, “the gathering will be a time of prayer, solidarity, and public witness on behalf of those who may face deportation to one of the most dangerous countries in the world.”
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said in a sit-down interview with this newspaper in March that Haiti is worse than ever.
DeWine said he thinks many people will find another country to which to go and said he has not “found one person” who said they’ll return to Haiti. The governor has been monitoring the situation in the country through Father Tom Hagan, who runs the Becky DeWine school, named for the DeWines’ daughter who was killed in a 1993 car accident at 22 years old.
“(Hagan) says it’s worse than any time — he’s been down there for 30 years — he says this is the most violent time it’s ever been, so nobody’s going to go back to Haiti if they can avoid it,” DeWine said. “They’re going to try to find some other country to go to.”
DeWine said the idea that the country has improved “absolutely flies in the face of totally all evidence that there is,” pointing to commercial planes not being able to fly into the capital Port-au-Prince due to gangs shooting at them.
Dorsainvil said the worst scenario is TPS being struck down and resulting in chaos in the community. For now, he said many Haitians have realized that if they must stay in the U.S., leaving Springfield doesn’t make them any safer, so many have decided to stay.
The Haitian leader urged the community to continue being resilient in the face of continued adversity.
“This is another chapter in our journey as a Haitian people,” Dorsainvil said. “I don’t know if it is our fate to be in this type of situation, but I will continue to encourage them to do the right thing and keep hoping and keep doing anything they can do for their safety and the safety of the kids and all the family members.”
Staff writer Cornelius Frolik contributed to this report.
Comments are closed.