President Donald Trump's executive orders on immigration have many in the region's Hispanic community worried about the future. There have been threats of immigration raids across the country, and locally people's businesses and homes have been targeted by hateful flyers from the Ku Klux Klan warning immigrants to "leave now."
Hispanic Chamber of Cincinnati USA President Alfonso Cornejo says local business owners are worried about their livelihoods and their employees. He says no one has reported police-like activity so far, but they're still on edge.
"People are concerned. Families are concerned. Business owners are concerned. In fact, the entire population is concerned," Cornejo tells WVXU. "They get the news. They see the news on television and online and [in] the newspapers. And I think the information that they get is totally negative, negative, negative, negative and negative. It's not good news for this community, for my community," he says.
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The Hispanic population in Ohio is small — just about 4.2% of residents, according to Cornejo and the state. These are people, he notes, who pay taxes, provide jobs, and do good work for the community. In general, per the American Immigration Council, immigrants make up 6.1% of Ohio's labor force, and about 8% of immigrants in Ohio are entrepreneurs.
Steven Hubbard, a data analyst with the Council, told the Ohio Statehouse News Bureau immigrants also pay federal, state and local taxes.
"A total of $7.8 billion are going into both state, local, and federal taxes and that leaves them with spending power of $18.6 billion within the state,” he added.
Cornejo says people are especially worried about their children — what they may see and/or experience in their schools, homes, churches and other spaces.
"[If] they see something happening in a restaurant, in a church and in the school, that can provide trauma [and] mental health issues," he says. "If I have a kid that is six, five years old, and they see the way these things happen, that might be creating a big issue later in life."
For now, Cornejo is encouraging Chamber members to remain calm and not take drastic measures such as selling a business. Instead, he says, they should consult with a lawyer about their concerns.
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"The message that I have is that I don't want them to overreact, which is very difficult to do, because all these executive orders are extremely inflammatory and in a way insulting."
As for threats from Republicans in the legislature — and supported by Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost — to eliminate sanctuary in cities and counties in Ohio, Cornejo says he's somewhat concerned, but suggests police forces are needed for bigger issues.
"If you [provide] support [to ICE], you do not provide policing services to the rest of the city. If you distract the police that we have, which is not very large; if you spend too much time and energy looking for these quote, 'criminals' that might not be criminals, then we're not protecting the city. That will be a concern for me."
