Ohio

‘Nobody’s eating cats. Nobody’s eating dogs.’ John Legend says Haitian immigrants deserve grace

Published

9 months ago

September 13, 2024

Press Room

‘Nobody’s eating cats. Nobody’s eating dogs.’ John Legend says Haitian immigrants deserve grace

‘We all just want to live and flourish and raise our families in a healthy and safe environment,’ Springfield native John Legend

John Legend
| Statement

Editor’s note: Springfield native John Legend, an international acclaimed performer, took to social media Sept. 12 to address backlash against Haitian immigrants promoted by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and his running mate, U.S. Sen. JD Vance of Middletown. His statement is below.

My name is John Legend, and I was born as John. R Stevens from a place called Springfield, Ohio. Springfield, Ohio — you may have heard of Springfield, Ohio, this week.

In fact, if you watch the debate, we were discussed by our presidential candidates, including a very special, interesting man named Donald J. Trump.

Now, Springfield has had a large influx of Haitian immigrants who come to our city.

Now, our city had been shrinking for decades. We didn’t have enough jobs. We didn’t have enough opportunity so people left and went somewhere else.

SPRINGFIELD DAD: My son wasn’t murdered. Stop using Aiden Clark’s death to vomit hate about immigrants.

So, when I was there, we had upwards of 75,000 people and in the last five years we were down to like 60,000 people.

But of late, during the Biden administration, there have been more jobs that opened up. More manufacturing jobs, more plants, factories that needed employees and were ready to hire people.

So, we had a lot of job opportunities, and we didn’t have enough people in our town of 60,000 people to fill those jobs.

And during the same time, there has been upheaval and turmoil in Haiti. The federal government granted visas and immigration status to a certain number of Haitian immigrants so they could come to our country legally.

Our demand in Springfield for additional labor met up with the supply of additional Haitian immigrants and here we are.

We had about 15,000 or so immigrants move to my town of 60,000.You might say, wow, that’s a lot of people for a town that only had 60,000 before. That’s a 25% increase.

That is correct.

So you might imagine there are some challenges with integrating a new population.

Springfield officials: ‘ Springfield officials: ‘No credible reports’ of crime by Haitian migrants in Ohio

No ‘roasted Fluffy.’ Haitians aren’t eating cats in Springfield. Vance is a liar.

New language, new culture, new dietary preferences. All kinds of reasons why there might be growing pains.

Making sure there are enough services to accommodate the new, larger population that might need bilingual service providers, etc. etc.

So, there are plenty of reasons why this might be a challenge for my hometown.

But the bottom line is these people came to Springfield because there were jobs for them and they were willing to work.

They wanted to live the American dream, just like your German ancestors, your Irish ancestors, your Italian ancestors, your Jewish ancestors. Your Jamaican ancestors, your Polish ancestors – all these ancestors who moved to this country.

Maybe not speaking the language that everyone else spoke.

Maybe not eating the same foods.

Maybe having to adjust.

Maybe having to integrate.

But all coming because they saw opportunity for themselves and their families in the American dream.

And they came here to do that.

Letters to the Editor: JD Vance’s cat fascination is a distraction

Some facts about immigrants. They usually do very well here.

They are hard working.

They are ambitious.

They commit less crime than native born Americans, and they will assimilate and integrate in time, but it takes time.So I think all of us need to have the same kind of grace that we would want our ancestors to have when they moved here with our Haitian brothers and sisters.

Nobody’s eating cats.

Nobody’s eating dogs.

We all just want to live and flourish and raise our families in a healthy and safe environment.

How about we love one another? I grew up in the Christian tradition we said to love our neighbor as we love ourselves and treat strangers as though they might be Christ.

So, how about we adopt that ethos when we talk about immigrants moving to our communities and don’t spread hateful, xenophobic, racist lies about them.

John R. Stevens from Springfield signing off.

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Ohio

EOG Resources bets big on Ohio oil boom with $5.6 billion Encino deal

Published

5 hours ago

May 30, 2025

Press Room

EOG Resources bets big on Ohio oil boom with .6 billion Encino deal

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Ohio

Ohio State Buckeyes Fans are Furious Over Scheduling Blunder

Published

23 hours ago

May 29, 2025

Press Room

Ohio State Buckeyes Fans are Furious Over Scheduling Blunder

Last year, Ohio State Buckeyes fans were not exactly please with not having any intriguing home night games on their schedule. As a matter of fact, their only evening matchup was in Week 2 against Western Michigan. Not exactly a thriller.

Well, next season, it appears to be more of the same.

Ohio State will be playing an early night game at Ohio Stadium in September, but it will come against the Ohio Bobcats. Understandably, Buckeyes fans are peeved.

Ohio State will begin its season facing the Texas Longhorns at noon ET on Saturday, Aug. 30 before hosting Grambling at 3:30 p.m. ET the following week.

Based on what we saw from the Buckeyes’ schedule last year, this should not come as much of a surprise. Remember: fans routinely complained about too many noon starts in 2024, which lasted pretty much the entire regular season.

It would certainly be nice for Ohio State to play a meaningful game under the lights, but that obviously is not in the cards for the Buckeyes in 2025.

Ohio State is coming off of a national championship, so expectations are high heading into next season. However, because the Buckeyes lost a ton of players to the NFL Draft, there isn’t quite as much hype surrounding the team this time around.

That being said, Ohio State is still widely viewed as a College Football Playoff team and should have a great shot of defending its national title next year. It just unfortunately won’t be in prime time most of the way. Well, except against Ohio.

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MORE: Ohio State Buckeyes 2026 Target Announces Commitment Date

MORE: Ohio State is Quietly Developing a Glaring Recruiting Problem

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Ohio

Will Ohio’s marijuana law change soon? House lawmakers pitch new plan

Published

2 days ago

May 29, 2025

Press Room

Will Ohio’s marijuana law change soon? House lawmakers pitch new plan

A new version of Senate Bill 56 eliminates jail time for passengers smoking marijuana, restricts home-grow locations and regulates hemp products.
The bill changes how marijuana tax revenue is allocated, reducing funds for municipalities and eliminating money for substance abuse and social equity programs.
Additional changes include capping dispensaries, restricting smoking locations, banning child-centric advertising and setting THC limits.

Ohio lawmakers are one step closer to changing the recreational marijuana law approved by voters in 2023.

A House committee unveiled changes May 28 to Senate Bill 56, an overhaul of the adult-use cannabis program that would impose new rules and change how the state spends marijuana revenue. Lawmakers worked behind the scenes for weeks to hash out a modified proposal, and more changes could be on the horizon.

“Our organization has worked diligently to ensure that policymakers hear from the industry before making any changes to the current statute,” said David Bowling, executive director of the Ohio Cannabis Coalition. “While there’s still more to assess, the proposal is an important step forward.”

Here’s where the bill stands now.

House scraps jail time for smoking marijuana as a passenger

The Senate created new penalties for people who smoke or vape marijuana while riding in a vehicle, including a mandatory three-day jail sentence for first-time offenders. House lawmakers got rid of that.

It would still be illegal to drive under the influence of marijuana. The bill also requires anyone driving with marijuana to store it in the trunk or keep products in their original packaging.

Advocates for criminal justice reform said the bill is an improvement but doesn’t do enough to right the wrongs of cannabis prohibition. Lawmakers plan to eliminate a social equity program − which never got off the ground − that aimed to diversify the industry and study the impact of marijuana enforcement.

“We remain committed to our position that, in addition to legalizing cannabis, we must also repair the harms of past criminalization,” said Patrick Higgins, senior policy counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio.

How much marijuana can you grow at home in Ohio?

The latest version of the bill maintains current rules for home grow: Adults 21 and older can grow six plants individually or up to 12 in a household with multiple adults.

But the legislation also adds some new restrictions. It bans growing at homes that serve as child care facilities or transitional housing. People who want to gift home-grown marijuana to another adult could only do so at their primary residence.

Hemp regulation added to mix

Lawmakers combined changes to the marijuana law with their efforts to crack down on delta-8 THC and other hemp-derived cannabis.

The bill now requires intoxicating hemp products to be sold at marijuana dispensaries with a tax rate of 10%. That includes anything inhaled or ingested with over 2 milligrams of delta-9 THC per package or 0.5 milligrams of other THC.

Retailers and breweries could sell beverages with no more than 0.42 milligrams of THC per ounce, which amounts to about 5 milligrams per 12-ounce can. There would be a $3.50-per-gallon excise tax on drinks.

New plan for spending marijuana tax money

The bill keeps the current tax rate of 10% on adult-use marijuana products, even though Gov. Mike DeWine and Senate Republicans pushed for an increase. But it changes where that money goes.

Lawmakers eliminated funds for substance abuse prevention and the social equity program. Instead, most of the money would go to the state’s general bank account.

The proposal does allocate 25% of the revenue to cities with dispensaries for seven years. That’s an upgrade from DeWine’s plan to scrap the fund altogether, but still less than current law, which gives municipalities 36% in perpetuity.

Many local leaders are frustrated that money promised in the voter-backed statute could decrease or go away entirely.

“We have a number of municipalities who went out on a political limb, often with great discussion, to create an environment for an emerging industry that’s somewhat controversial to emerge,” Rep. Jamie Callender, R-Concord, said.

How else could Ohio’s marijuana law change?

The new version of Senate Bill 56 also:

Limits the number of active dispensaries statewide to 400.
Only allows people to smoke or vape at private residences and outdoor concert venues, provided the venue allows it.
Bans advertisements and packaging that feature cartoons or other content geared toward children.
Caps THC content at 35% for flower and 70% for extracts, although the Division of Cannabis Control could change or eliminate those limits.
Requires the division to establish standards for delivery and online ordering at dispensaries.
Allows Ohioans to apply for expungement for low-level marijuana possession convictions.

The House will hold at least one more committee hearing on the bill before it’s up for a full vote. It would then need to go back to the Senate.

State government reporter Haley BeMiller can be reached at hbemiller@gannett.com or @haleybemiller on X.