A Springfield, Ohio, woman turned on her neighbors, accusing them of racism for complaining about the admitted increase in traffic accidents caused by Haitian nationals.
Blaze News’ Julio Rosas spoke to several locals outside Springfield City Hall as they waited to attend the city’s highly attended commission meeting on September 24.
‘Nothing but 1960s hatred. That’s all it is.’
One woman told Rosas that she believes the biggest issue facing the community is not anything stemming from the influx of Haitian nationals but rather her neighbors’ “hatred.”
“There’s no reason for it. These people aren’t losing out on anything but maybe a little time standing in line,” she stated.
Referring to the Haitian nationals in the city, she said, “They’re not taking a penny away from them; they’re not taking a house away from them; they’re not taking anything. They’re here working and making the city so much better.”
The resident’s statements directly contradicted many other locals’ voiced concerns, including the increased rental costs and a general lack of housing in the area since approximately 20,000 Haitian nationals moved into the metropolitan area.
The resident did concede with her fellow neighbors that Haitian drivers have caused an increase in traffic accidents.
On the first day of school on August 2023, a Haitian national struck a school bus, killing an 11-year-old boy and hospitalizing 20 others.
“It has been an issue, but at the same time, we had all these people that were speeding up and down the street,” the resident declared.
“Now, you can recognize a Haitian driving. Just drive with caution,” she advised. “You know how they drive. Yes, it is a problem, but until they get fully trained, just be more cautious. Simple as that.”
The resident went on to outright reject neighbors’ claims that Haitian males have been following females around retail stores, as a number of locals have recently told Blaze News.
“Oh, hell no,” she responded. “They would love to be followed in the stores, but, no, they’re not being followed in the stores.”
When asked whether she believes people making such claims are lying, she replied, “Yes, I believe they’re lying.”
“It’s all about the hatred,” she said. “We’re back in the ’60s again.”
“The biggest problem that they are really having is there’s just too many black people,” she continued. “They’re scared of us. They always have been.”
She expressed frustration that many of the locals speaking at the meetings do not stay for the entire discussion.
“They stay down here long enough to complain, get their little two minutes in the camera, then we switch over to the business — so what we’re going to do with the city’s money and that type of thing. And, if you’ll notice, that room will be empty,” she remarked.
Despite previously asserting that the immigrants are “not taking a penny away” from residents, she told Rosas that the city has allocated resources to organizations working with the Haitian community to help them learn how to drive and speak English.
“They’ve got all of this in motion. It’s not going to happen overnight. Give it a little time,” she declared.
She noted that she hopes Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump does not come to visit Springfield because she is concerned it would “stir up more mess.”
“It’s going to cause more hatred. It’s going to cause a lot more people calling in bomb threats and everything,” she said.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine (R) recently stated that the bomb threats were all hoaxes and originated overseas, Blaze News previously reported.
When confronted with this information, she told Rosas, “It might be. That might be true.”
“But had these people had a little empathy in their heart instead of hatred in their heart, this would have never happened,” she continued. “Nothing but 1960s hatred. That’s all it is.”
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