How A Haitian Man Is Making Majority Trump-Backing Ohio Town Confront Party’s Immigration Views

The Trump administration announced that it would terminate Temporary Protection Status (TPS) for Haitians starting on Sept. 2, 2025.

A Haitian science teacher and translator has people in a majority Trump-backing town in Ohio confront its party’s immigration views.

People in Putnam County call Marc Rocher a “lifeline” in his community. As NBC News reports, Rocher is a church volunteer and an essential member of the community who has successfully bridged the gap between longtime residents in Putnam County and Haitians.

Rocher arrived in the United States in 2023 after his close friend was kidnapped in his hometown near Port-au-Prince. He was granted TPS status and a work permit, allowing him to serve as an educator and translator in a community in Ohio experiencing teacher shortages.

One family, who adopted two young boys from Haiti amid the gang violence that has skyrocketed in the country since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, told NBC News that Rocher has helped to reduce the boys’ anxiety and emotional struggles.

Fate For Haitians Looms Amid Trump Administration’s TPS Crackdown

However, after the Trump administration announced that it would terminate Temporary Protection Status (TPS) for Haitians starting on Sept. 2, Rocher and his community aren’t sure about their fate in the country. There are approximately 521,000 Haitian nationals currently protected under TPS in the United States, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

In a community that overwhelmingly supported Trump in the 2024 Presidential Election (83%), many people are grappling with the Republican Party’s tough immigration policies.

Across the community, many people, both young and old, are advocating for Rocher. A Columbus High School senior joined other students in writing a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to support Rocher.

“It was both upsetting and confusing,” Schumacher told NBC News. “He was doing such great work with the boys — it just made sense for him to stay.”

Teachers are joining students in writing to Republican lawmakers to push back against what could be Rocher’s deportation. The Columbus Grove School District is also working with attorneys to sponsor Rocher for an H1-B visa to support multiple school districts.

The need for Rocher comes amid an increase in Haitians in Ohio. During the Presidential campaign, Trump and then Vice presidential candidate JD Vance, who was also a U.S. senator representing Ohio, falsely accused the Haitian community of eating cats and dogs in Springfield.

Recently, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine warned that the state is preparing for mass layoffs of immigrant workers, with the TPS ending.