Ohio city at center of false Republican claims about immigrants cancels annual cultural festival

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — Ohio state police will help protect schools in a city at the center of a political furor over Haitian migrants, the governor announced Monday, while local officials canceled an annual celebration of cultural diversity in the fallout over former President Donald Trump’s false claims about pet-eating.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, has denounced the debunked rumors that spread online before Trump amplified them at last week’s presidential debate, saying there is no evidence of it. He said at a news conference in Springfield on Monday that dozens of members of the Ohio State Highway Patrol will be stationed in city schools starting Tuesday following a series of threats across the city, sweeping each building every morning before the arrival of faculty or students. Security cameras have also been stationed at strategic spots in the city, and a bomb-sniffing dog will be in the city and available round-the-clock.

“We know that people are very, very concerned,” DeWine said. “But we’ve moved resources into Springfield. People have the right to feel safe as well as being safe.”

Springfield City Hall, several schools, and state motor vehicle offices in Springfield were forced to evacuate last week after receiving bomb threats. At least 33 separate bomb threats were made in recent days, all of them hoaxes, DeWine said. He said some of the threats came from overseas, but declined to name the country.

“The people who are doing this are doing this to sow discord in our community,” said Andy Wilson, director of the Ohio Department of Public Safety. “We just can’t let them do that. We can’t let them do that. We have to keep providing the services that the citizens of Springfield and Clark County expect.”

Springfield has been the focus of intense attention in recent days after Trump, his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, and the Republican presidential campaign repeated false claims about Haitian immigrants eating domestic pets and waterfowl.

President Joe Biden, appearing in Philadelphia at the National HBCU Week Conference on Monday, addressed the situation in Springfield, condemning what he called the “lies and hate.”

“It’s wrong. It’s simply wrong. And it must stop,” he said.

Springfield canceled its annual celebration of diversity, arts and culture in response to the threats. The city’s two-day CultureFest had been scheduled to begin Sept. 27 but was called off “in light of recent threats and safety concerns,” Springfield officials announced Monday.

“We deeply regret having to cancel CultureFest, as we know it is a beloved event for our community,” City Manager Bryan Heck said in a statement. “However, the safety of our residents and visitors must come first.”

Two colleges in Springfield held classes virtually on Monday. Wittenberg University said it received two threats over the weekend, “both of which were targeted toward members of the Haitian Community.” Clark State College said it would operate virtually through Friday “due to recent events in Springfield.”

The city itself seemed quiet on Monday. Among the diners at a Creole restaurant were friends Bill Teager and Paul Gomia, who had driven more than an hour to help support a Haitian-owned business.

“We’ve both just been incensed over the last week of what has happened to this town nationally and even locally,” Teager said.

Thousands of Haitian immigrants have settled in recent years in the predominantly white, blue-collar city of about 60,000, about 45 miles (70 kilometers) from the state capital of Columbus, where they have found work in factories and warehouses that had been struggling to fill job openings. The sudden influx has strained schools, health care facilities and city services and driven up the cost of housing.

DeWine acknowledged that Springfield has challenges but said that it’s a “city that frankly, is on the move. If you look where Springfield was 15 years ago, ten years ago, even five years ago, we’re moving.”

He declined to criticize Trump, saying the Biden administration’s record on immigration is a legitimate topic for debate. But he pointed out that the Haitians in Springfield are there legally under a federal program that allows them to remain in the country temporarily because conditions in Haiti are considered unsafe for them to return.

“The companies hire them because they needed the help and they needed the support,” DeWine said. “These are people who care about their families. These are people who value education. They are hard workers. And I think we should we should respect that.”

He added: “These ... people who are spreading the hate need to move on. They need to go away. They need to stop it.”

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Rubinkam reported from northeastern Pennsylvania. Associated Press writer Ayanna Alexander in Philadelphia contributed to this report.