Six ways to help Haitian-Ohioans today
In light of the Supreme Court ruling on TPS for Haitian-Ohioans, people around the state and country are wondering what they can do to help.
Here is a list of the key organizations working on the ground in Springfield and Lima, another area of Ohio that welcomed Haitians. Donate and get involved with these organizations. To find groups in Columbus or other parts of the state, click here.
Call Senators Husted and Moreno, and tell them to pass the Haiti Emergency Relief Act, which already cleared the U.S. House on a bipartisan basis. This bill would extend TPS through the end of the Trump administration. You can reach their DC offices by calling the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and asking to be transferred to their offices. After making your phone calls, email them here.
Share the Ohio Is Home resource website. It contains information to help immigrants, allies, service providers, businesses, educators, and community members understand and exercise their rights, and stay mentally healthy. The site is available in English, French, Spanish, and Simplified Chinese, with some resources in additional languages. To organize a training for your group or community, contact hotline@ohioimmigrant.org.
Program the Ohio Immigrant Hotline (email and phone) into your phone, and share it with your friends and community. Reach out if you have a question, need a speaker, want to report abuses, need support for a loved one in detention, and more. The number is 419-777-4357 (HELP) and email is hotline@ohioimmigrant.org. Call during business hours or email, text, or leave a voice mail 24-7.
Order “Ohio Is Home” and “Migration Is Human” merch from our online store. Many of our designs are by Shema Asifiwe, a high school student in Cincinnati, who also drew the illustrations in our new coloring book. Wearing, using, and gifting this merchandise and the coloring book are a great way to spread the message that we welcome and support immigrants in Ohio.
Join the Ohio Immigrant Alliance e-mail list for updates and action alerts, and donate to OIA. Help keep our hotline, commissary support, jail abuse monitoring/advocacy, and immigrant accompaniment programs going.
Said Lynn Tramonte, Executive Director of Ohio Immigrant Alliance, “Everyone deserves to live in a safe community. That’s why people born in Haiti and other countries made the difficult decision to move here. They’re taking care of their families and that’s something to be proud of. Many Ohioans have welcomed immigrants with open arms.
“I have a message to Governor DeWine, Senators Moreno and Husted, and the Ohio House members. The only thing to do right now is figure out Plan B. You cannot let Haitian-Ohioans be deported to a country where they will be killed. They are our family members, co-workers, friends, and neighbors. These are our people now. You cannot sit back and let this happen. You have power. Use it to be leaders, now.
“And if ICE is planning anything, they need to understand that a show of force from bullies with guns, hiding behind masks, will not be tolerated. As we’ve seen in Minnesota and Columbus during Operation Buckeye, ICE and the Border Patrol do not bring safety. They bring violence. Whether we’re talking about our schools, hospitals, businesses, community centers, or neighborhoods, the presence of immigration agents on the streets of local communities only creates fear, causes pain, hurts businesses, and harms children — unnecessarily. Ohio leaders need to do their jobs and join us in protecting our community, rather than working with ICE and the Border Patrol, or letting them run all over our streets.
“At the end of the day, WE are the ones who keep us safe. People who moved here from other places have already shown tremendous strength and courage. Now it’s time for those of us who were born here to be brave. Stand up to the Supreme Court’s shortsightedness and a potential federal invasion of Ohio, and protect our community members. Organize, support each other, speak up, and act. That is how we emerge from this point in time together and stronger.”
