In Ohio, Haitians Feel Shaken by Ankle Monitors and Increased ICE Presence
New York Times · LC · trust 37/100
The devices, which will make it easier for authorities to locate immigrants in Springfield if large-scale deportations begin, have intensified a sense of dread.
Listen · 7:42 min Share full article Jonas Julien arrives at the Haitian Support Center in Springfield, Ohio, after reporting to ICE and getting fitted with an ankle monitor on Wednesday. Credit... Maddie McGarvey for The New York Times By Miriam Jordan
Miriam Jordan reported from Springfield, a city between Dayton and Columbus, transformed by Haitians who have arrived there in recent years.
The 35-year-old Haitian immigrant had completed another grueling 12-hour shift at 3:30 a.m. After a quick bite and shower, he had stretched on the couch to avoid waking his wife and their 2-month-old daughter. But sleep never came.
“I don’t know what awaits me, and I am just exhausted from the worry,” Mr. Julien said after climbing into the back seat of a Toyota Corolla, clutching a folder of immigration documents that included an active asylum petition and a work permit valid until 2029.
By the time he returned to his wife and daughter about 10 hours later, a clunky black band with a blinking light would be clamped around his left ankle. He would have an order to report back to ICE in a few weeks. And he would be afraid for their future.
Mr. Julien is among hundreds of Haitians in Springfield who have been summoned to ICE offices, according to the Haitian Support Center, a local organization. The group estimates that more than 100 people have been fitted with ankle monitors.
A city of 60,000 between Dayton and Columbus, Springfield emerged in recent years as hub of Haitian immigration and its newcomers a target of attacks from President Trump.
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