Let’s lift the false suspense: dog and cat friends can breathe. Haitians in Springfield do not eat pets. The mere fact of uttering this grotesque phrase reflects the turmoil that has ravaged this small town in Ohio. An artificial tornado, provoked by Donald Trump. During the televised debate with Kamala Harris on September 10, the former president retransmitted this urban legend from Facebook, thus consecrating Haitians as the viral incarnation of the migratory threat that weighs, according to him, on the United States, with the complicity of the Democrats.
The consequences were immediate. Around thirty bomb threats were reported in the city, the origin of which has not been established. The cultural festival, scheduled for the end of September, was cancelled. Schools were closed, and the university organised online classes.
At the small Haitian community centre, operations manager Rose-Thamar Joseph has a backlog of 280 emails. Messages of support and solidarity are pouring in from all over the country. “We are focusing on the Haitian community, but it is the entire Springfield community that is suffering from this situation. says this Amazon employee, in excellent French. I was stunned, astonished, when I heard Trump. Coming from a personality of this caliber, perhaps educated… These people have everything necessary to verify the information, but they have not done so. »
The centre’s executive director, Viles Dorsainvil, is overwhelmed. An employee at the city’s welfare office, the thoughtful 38-year-old serves as a point of contact for the authorities. Together with the other volunteers, Viles Dorsainvil sent messages to the community. Those who can afford it are encouraged to install an alarm and cameras in their homes. At night it is best to leave the light out. Always go out in a group. Fun times.
“I love the diversity of Springfield, said the director. But there is a small group of supremacists who are not in favour of integration. Last month, five to ten of them marched around armed and hooded. It was just to intimidate. We also had negative comments, houses and cars vandalised. It is a very unfortunate situation, but we keep our heads held high. » In reality, the problem goes beyond a handful of extremists. The transformation of a city has turned it into the laboratory of the United States, a mirror of its anxieties and its incandescent polarization.
Virtues of growth
Situated between Dayton and Columbus, surrounded by gas stations, warehouses and nondescript chain restaurants, Springfield has experienced a turmoil that cannot be captured in clichés. In the 1960s, the city had 80,000 inhabitants. Industry employed many people; Springfield developed as the steelworks northeast, the American industrial heartland. But beginning in the 1980s, relocations devastated the local economy and decimated homes. The population fell to 60,000. And then another upheaval struck.
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