A coalition of Haitians, Springfield pastors and activists called on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and lawmakers on Tuesday to end GPS ankle monitoring of immigrants.
These demands came after the death by suicide of Pierre Damas Bel, 20, of Springfield. State troopers said he stepped in front of a vehicle on a Clark County roadway on Monday morning.
His family said in a statement they believe his death is connected to the fact he was forced to wear an ankle monitor by the Department of Homeland Security after the agency ended Temporary Protected Status for Haiti in July.
TPS is how many of Springfield's 12,000-15,000 Haitians were legally living and working in the U.S.
DHS has ordered hundreds of the city’s Haitian immigrants to wear the GPS tracking devices since their legal status was ended.
Bel's friend Yola Lamarre said he despised the device.
"This has nothing to do about immigration enforcement," she said. "When you're dehumanizing people, you're putting chains on people who have not ever committed a crime."
Anyone considering suicide or in crisis can text or call 988 to reach the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Press 2 to speak to a counselor in Spanish.
In a July 30th Instagram post, Bel wrote he came to this country to pursue his education. He graduated with honors in May from Springfield High School, where he also played soccer and was a member of the Junior ROTC.
Bel just began to study neuroscience at Wright State University and hoped to become a doctor.
"I didn’t come here to commit a crime or hurt anyone," his post said. "Yet now I’m walking through the streets of the United States with a GPS monitor on my leg, carrying a feeling of shame and humiliation that I never imagined I would experience.”
Viles Dorsainvil, executive director of the Springfield Haitian Support Center, appealed to DHS and lawmakers.
"Humbly, I make an appeal to the human being in you to shut down this program of shackling the community" he said. "You don't have to shame the people. You don't have to destroy them. Enough is enough."
"How many young people do we have to lose before this administration realizes what is at stake?" Dosainvil asked.
A DHS spokesperson said in July that the federal agency conducts law enforcement activities across the country every day and doesn't discuss ongoing or future operations.
The spokesperson also said in the statement that TPS is intended to be temporary but had become a de facto amnesty program.
ICE also says on its website: “ICE’s Alternatives to Detention programs exist to ensure compliance with release conditions and provide important case management services for non-detained aliens.”
Pastor Philomene Philostin is founder of Fomsove Production, a Springfield program designed to support and encourage Haitian youth. Fomsove means "must save" in Creole.
She has one message for all Haitian youth.
"Do not kill yourself. God has a plan for you, and I believe he has a better plan for you," she said.
People are planning vigils to honor Pierre Damas Bel.
In Columbus, one will be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday at 90 West Broad St. Then Springfield Neighbors United will host a vigil in Fountain Square in downtown Springfield at 5:30 p.m. Friday.
Experts say suicide is not typically driven by one event or circumstance, but from layers of factors. Yet, research has been showing how the Trump administration's immigration crackdown has been creating toxic stress on those affected.
Anyone considering suicide or in crisis can text or call 988 to reach the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Press 2 to speak to a counselor in Spanish.
