Haitians sue Ohio governor for suspending refugee resettlement program

Lawsuit says Mike DeWine's action was motivated by anti-immigrant bias

Springfield, Ohio —

A group of Haitian refugees have filed a lawsuit against Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, accusing him of suspending the state's refugee resettlement program out of anti-immigrant bias, in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court on Thursday, alleges that DeWine's order suspending the program was "motivated by animus against immigrants" and "was not supported by any legitimate governmental interest."

The lawsuit names DeWine, as well as the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services and its director, Kimberly Hall, as defendants.

DeWine's order, issued in June 2021, suspended the state's participation in the federal refugee resettlement program for 90 days.

The order cited concerns about the Biden administration's "unilateral changes" to the program, but did not provide any specific examples of those changes.

The lawsuit alleges that DeWine's order was "part of a pattern of discrimination against immigrants" by the governor.

It cites DeWine's previous support for President Donald Trump's travel ban on citizens from several Muslim-majority countries, as well as his opposition to sanctuary cities.

The lawsuit also alleges that DeWine's order has caused "irreparable harm" to the plaintiffs, who are all Haitian refugees who were hoping to resettle in Ohio.

The plaintiffs are seeking a declaration that DeWine's order is unconstitutional, an injunction barring the state from enforcing the order, and damages.

The lawsuit is the latest in a series of legal challenges to state and local efforts to restrict refugee resettlement.

In recent years, several states have passed laws or issued executive orders limiting or suspending the resettlement of refugees, citing concerns about security or welfare costs.

However, these efforts have been met with legal challenges, and several courts have struck down such laws or orders as unconstitutional.