On a recent day at the Haitian Support Center in Springfield, administrative assistant James Fleurjean welcomed a Springfield resident in. The man is Haitian and has questions about immigration papers he's received.
The man is in the U.S. through Temporary Protected Status. WYSO not sharing his name because he fears being targeted by ICE and deported.
Fleurjean calls the hotline at the Department of Homeland Security for an update on the man’s case. He had two cases, one for asylum and one for TPS. They learn a Florida judge closed his asylum case in 2024.
Yet, according to Fleurjean, the man’s asylum application may be re-considered.
Across Ohio, there's an estimated 50,000 Haitian immigrants, with an estimated 12,000 to 15,000 Haitians live in Springfield. Many are here under TPS. Some are now plugging into the city’s Haitian Support Center to figure out what options they have.
U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services said on July 1 that work authorization were extended to expire July 10 for Haitians with TPS.
Fleurjean is also in this country on TPS. Early in July 2018, he had a plane ticket in hand to return to Haiti. But then, assassins killed Haitian President Jovenel Moïse. Suddenly, he couldn’t go home.
He secured TPS and got a work permit. Eventually, a friend told Fleurjean about jobs in Springfield, drawing him to the city. He said he stayed because of the ongoing chaos and instability in his home nation.
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled President Donald Trump can end Temporary Protected Status for Haiti and Syria. The Department of Homeland Security says conditions in Haiti have improved enough for citizens to safely return. Meanwhile, The State Department maintains a Level 4 travel advisory, warning Americans to avoid the country due to widespread violence, kidnapping, civil unrest, and poor healthcare.
Fleurjean said gang members have taken over his home in Port au Prince. He believes if he returned, his life would be in danger.
Now he struggles to give those with the same status answers he doesn’t have for himself.
At the Haitian Support Center, Fleurjean’s duties include entering client information into the computer. The center partners with several attorneys who need these materials so they can help TPS holders navigate the Immigration System.
He also handles phone calls, some are uncomfortable. One this day, a non-Haitian man calls saying Haitians need to leave the U.S. and build up their own country.
However other calls are more encouraging. A woman from Columbus asks for directions to the center. When she arrives, she inquires how she can help the center's clients.
Fleurjean says he’s not afraid of ICE agents, nor of being deported. He’s more concerned with the city’s many TPS holding Haitians not able to work and living in uncertainty.
Fleurjean scans into his computer the picture of a young man applying for asylum. A confident smile on his face.
"Some people, they may not like you, but there are more people that loves you. Giving up is doing the favor to please the ego of those who hate you," said Fleurjean. "At the end of the day all you have is to keep going and keep going with the one that loves you."
