A member of the Sylacauga City Council told Fox News that people in her city want answers as to the cause of Haitian immigration to the area.
Sylacauga City council member Laura Barlow Heath, in a video interview, said the city officials have no answers from federal authorities to give to their constituents.
“There is a fear here of becoming the next Springfield, Ohio, you know,” she said.
“When is enough enough? When do they stop coming in? How many are there going to be? There’s no answers. We have none. The unknown and uncertainty is scary. We have 12,236 people in our community, and we just do not have the adequate resources to handle an influx of migrants. It’s going to take away from resources that are already struggling here.”
Heath has served on the council since 2020.
The council dismissed a meeting earlier this month after only 20 minutes following questions from several residents about recent Haitian immigration to the area.
Several residents said they wanted to know how the city knew workers coming there were legal immigrants, who had determined this, and what effect they were having on crime and housing.
The council at a later meeting took more questions.
Sylacauga, like Athens and Albertville, has seen controversy on social media related to Haitian immigration, which some residents are blaming for crime, scarce housing, and overcrowded schools.
Heath said she does “feel bad” for Haitian immigrants, some of whom she feels are being trafficked for labor.
“They’re in a foreign country... It’s almost like a case of human trafficking...Even though they’re not working, people are hiring them in at a lower rate of pay. That’s just not right. Nobody wins in that situation at all,” she said.
However, she says city officials have learned nothing from federal authorities about the number of Haitians who have come to the area.
Officials in several counties in Alabama where Haitian immigration has been reported say they have not encountered a rise in crime, contrary to rumors, and that school enrollment increases have been in keeping with existing trends. Haitian immigration began increasing earlier this year after unrest on the Caribbean island caused by gang activity.
The federal Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan (CHNV) Parole Program allows immigrants from Haiti, along with three other countries, to enter the U.S. without entry documents if they have a sponsor, meet certain guidelines and undergo a vetting.
The program resumed last month after an investigation into fraud and once additional security measures were added. Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville this month criticized the program.
“The main thing is, I want to know why Sylacauga. Why here? We already have a housing crisis. We don’t have a lot of availability in jobs. So many uncertainties,” Heath said.
She also fears that a lack of information may lead to “civil unrest.”
“I believe people are very protective of their property,” she said. “And there’s fear with them not working, that when people are hungry or not working or in need, that they’re going to start vandalizing property and breaking in, because again...their culture is very broken right now, especially when it comes to laws and rules.”
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