“Haitian immigrants are eating cats and dogs,” this is how the disinformation resurrected by Trump arose

What’s really happening in Ohio

Springfield, a city of 60,000 people in the Midwest, has long been at the center of controversy over immigration. About 15,000 Haitians have settled in recent years alone, attracted by the low cost of living and job opportunities. While their presence has helped revitalize the local economy, it has also put pressure on social services and stoked safety concerns, especially after an 11-year-old boy died in a school bus accident caused by an undocumented Haitian immigrant. valid driver’s license, one year ago.

According to an analysis of Reuters, The arrival of this wave of immigrants in a few years has had a significant impact on the city. Data shows strong increases in enrollment in Medicaid, food assistance, and social welfare programs. Likewise, rents have also risen, along with traffic accidents. The number of social housing vouchers decreased as landlords opted for market-rate rents, which rose due to increased demand. A blow to the poorest residents who depended on those homes.

However, data does not show an overall increase in violent or property crimes. And salaries, instead of plummeting, have been growing at an annual rate of 6% for more than two years, approximately double the national average, thanks to the increase in job offers in a labor market that continues to experience difficulties. As Fed Chairman Jerome Powell noted in response to a question from Ohio Senator JD Vance, the increase in labor supply has helped grow the economy and curb inflation.

For many local civic and business leaders, the benefits of having more people to fill jobs, create businesses, and purchase goods and services do not go unnoticed. Springfield Mayor Rob Rue declared to Reuters: “Population growth could absolutely be beneficial in the long term. But we are in a difficult season….The most difficult thing for me as mayor, the five city commissioners and the city manager, is navigating through all of this.”

Article originally published in WIRED Italy. Adapted by Alondra Flores.