Texas Weekly Online

Texas-trans-white
Menu
Menu

Year: 2024

Springfield pastors speak out on Haitian refugee challenges: ‘The suffering is real’

Springfield pastors speak out on Haitian refugee challenges: ‘The suffering is real’

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — Two local pastors spoke to Fox News Digital about the ministry challenges facing their town that has been thrust into the national spotlight after viral videos of residents complaining of disturbing behavior from Haitian refugees who have settled in the area. “I think the biggest change that we’ve seen happen has just been sort of a breakdown in the trust of the community and some basic civility has also broken down a little bit,” BJ Newman, a pastor in Springfield, Ohio, told Fox News Digital from Springfield’s Snyder Park on Thursday. “I think the reason for that is because there have been so many changes so quickly…. In the 2020 census, there was about 50,000, a little north of that, residents here, now we have, numbers I have been reading, between 15,000 and 20,000 additional immigrants have arrived.” The comments come as the town where Newman works has been thrust into the national spotlight, attention that has only grown since Ohio Sen. JD Vance and former President Donald Trump highlighted the town in back-to-back days earlier this week. On Monday, Vance took to social media to write about the town, claiming that “people have had their pets abducted and eaten by people who shouldn’t be in this country.”  HAITIAN REFUGEES ‘DON’T UNDERSTAND THE LAWS,’ LAWMAKER SAYS AMID FATAL WRECK, CULTURAL CLASHES Trump doubled down on the claim during Tuesday’s debate, arguing that Haitian refugees in Springfield are “eating the dogs, the people that came in, they’re eating the cats.” “They’re eating the pets of the people that live there, and this is what’s happening in our country, and it’s a shame,”  Trump said in a response to a question about immigration. Many local leaders rushed to the town’s defense, disputing what has become a widespread claim.  Newman also expressed frustration with the claim, arguing that it has distracted from real issues being faced by Springfield locals as they try to adjust to the boom in the town’s population. “I think the suffering is real,” Newman said. “One of the reasons that I wanted to speak to this is because I am a pastor, and because I am seeing the local people that I’m ministering to are being affected by it.” At the heart of the issue, Newman argued, is how quickly the makeup of the town changed, exacerbating cultural differences that have led to tensions between longtime locals and the growing population of refugees from Haiti. RESIDENTS OF SPRINGFIELD, OHIO ATTEND CITY COUNCIL MEETING TO SHARE FRUSTRATION ABOUT MIGRANT CRISIS HITTING THEIR COMMUNITY “I think most people here in Springfield are good people, I think most people here are very kind and hospitable people. And I do think that the massive influx in such a short time has created real stress, real friction, and ultimately, I think that’s the source of all of the difficulty,” Newman said. That friction has increasingly bubbled up among longtime residents, who have attended city council meetings to attempt to voice their concerns about the influx. Locals have specifically pointed to road safety issues, arguing that many immigrant drivers have been found responsible for many recent crashes, including some of which have been fatal.  “The driving in town is horrendous,” former Ohio Republican State Rep. Kyle Koehler told Fox News Digital, adding that much of that can be chalked up to cultural differences and the fact that many immigrants have arrived in Springfield with no license and very little experience driving. In one high profile incident last October, a school bus with dozens of children collided with a minivan, resulting in over 20 injuries to students on board and one fatality, Aiden Clark. Hermanio Joseph, a Haitian immigrant, was found responsible for the accident and was later found guilty of involuntary manslaughter and vehicular homicide. FOCUS GROUP REACTS TO TRUMP CLAIM THAT MIGRANTS ARE ‘EATING THE DOGS’ IN OHIO TOWN “That traumatized this community,” Newman said of the fatal crash. “We mobilized pretty quickly in my role as a minister, and we had to work really hard to do some counseling and to intervene. And I think what that did was that shown a bright flashing star, like ‘wait a second, what’s going on here.’” However, as some residents mobilized to push back against the influx, others began mounting an effort to defend the Haitian refugees. At an event across town later Thursday, other religious leaders in town gathered at Springfield’s Covenant Presbyterian Church to highlight their efforts to welcome and assist the growing number of Haitian refugees. One of those attending the event was First Baptist Church Reverend Adam Banks, who told Fox News Digital that tension in Springfield is expected but can be overcome. “There’s tension in the community, much like the ways that tension has arisen in the past when there have been new members to move into an established area,” Banks said. Banks chalked up the current tension in Springfield to a “lack of understanding” and “familiarity” between two cultures not used to each other, but argued that also means there are “more people who are available to share their gifts” and assist with “services in the community.” Banks, who said some members of the Haitian community have attended his services, argued that refugees should be welcomed by the community instead of shunned. “They have joined right in helping with the sound system, sharing special music, sharing their lovely voices, reading scripture, providing leadership in various capacities in the congregation,” Banks said, adding that he will continue to “welcome” people who “want to celebrate the gift that each person brings and magnify god.” “We do not need any more false information being shared, that really display a fear we have for those that we don’t understand,” Banks said. Meanwhile, Newman argued that those who have been members of the community for a long time should be able to be part of the conversation, though they are typically dismissed for voicing any concerns. “I think there’s a larger

Maharashtra leads FDI with Rs 70,995 crore in Q1FY25

Maharashtra leads FDI with Rs 70,995 crore in Q1FY25

The western Indian state secured Rs.70,795 Crore in Q1. According to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, DPIIT (Government of India) Maharashtra secured over 50% of India’s total FDI.

Lawmakers crack down on CCP influence in US government tech, warn of potentially ‘devastating’ cyber attack

Lawmakers crack down on CCP influence in US government tech, warn of potentially ‘devastating’ cyber attack

FIRST ON FOX: There is a new bipartisan effort in Congress to take on the growing threat of cyberattacks by China and other U.S. adversaries. A bill led by Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Texas, would impose new guardrails on the technology the U.S. government is able to purchase by forcing a federal agency or office to only purchase it from “original equipment manufacturers” or “authorized resellers,” according to the bill text obtained by Fox News Digital. Fallon explained this would ensure U.S. technology is bought from “trusted sources” rather than a third party that could potentially be sourcing that equipment from nations like China, Russia or Iran. HOUSE CHINA COMMITTEE: CARGO CRANES GIVE CHINA A TOOL TO DISRUPT TRADE, MILITARY MOBILIZATION AT US PORTS “[O]ur adversaries have been targeting our hardware and software systems through selling the U.S. government counterfeit products through what are known as ‘gray market’ sellers,” Fallon explained. “These products, although marketed as genuine hardware, allow our enemies to gain access to U.S. government systems, making it far easier to conduct subsequent cyberattacks.” The Texas Republican warned the U.S. was being hit with “millions of attacks daily,” and that the growing sophistication of artificial intelligence (AI) technology was making cyberattacks easier to pull off. The House bill, the Securing America’s Federal Equipment (SAFE) Supply Chains Act, is backed by a bipartisan companion bill in the Senate. ARE CHINESE CRANES BEING USED FOR SURVEILLANCE AT US PORTS? HOUSE GOP VISITS PORT OF MIAMI TO FIND OUT That push is being led by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Senate Homeland Security Committee Chair Gary Peters, D-Mich. A “gray market” refers to an alternative channel for purchasing and selling genuine goods without the authorization of the manufacturer. It has been a particularly prevalent issue in the high-tech sphere, and though the lack of transparency makes its full scope hard to quantify, the technology gray market is believed to have cost manufacturers billions of dollars in losses, according to AGMA Global. China’s technology gray market is prevalent. A report from the Hong Kong-based Asia Times earlier this year said Chinese firms were getting around U.S. export controls to acquire high-end American AI chips for their own military and research uses. Additionally, while the U.S. government does have existing bans on certain Beijing-backed companies, the new bill would prevent China from using middle men to obscure those and other illicit sources and flooding the U.S. market. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Fallon said the legislation would “prevent the federal government from even being at risk of being duped into procuring these harmful products.” “The world is at peak instability and danger. Simply put, we are at an inflection point, which means we must do everything in our power to protect our vulnerable systems from cyber-attacks and intrusion from our enemies,” he said.