Trigger Warning: suicide
This summer, under former Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) motioned to expire Temporary Protected Statuses (TPS) for several countries, including but not limited to Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.
TPS is a temporary immigration status issued to countries under particular conditions such as armed conflict, environmental disasters or unusual national emergencies that prevent its citizens from returning safely. Under TPS, people “are not removable from the United States,” meaning they cannot be deported and can obtain documentation to work legally in the U.S. When TPS expires, immigrants lose protection from deportation and any ongoing work permits are terminated, which reverts immigrants to their previous immigration status.
On July 27, Haitian TPS was terminated, as it “no longer met the TPS conditions” according to Noem. Despite Noem’s claim, it is acknowledged that Haiti has been under a state of emergency since March 2024 and received a Level 4 travel advisory due to crime, kidnapping, terrorism and unrest, creating an unsafe environment.
“Changing the immigration status of these individuals is not in the best interest of the United States nor Ohio,” said Ohio Governor Mike DeWine in June while TPS termination was being pursued.
There are around 30,000 Haitians in central Ohio and about 15,000 Haitians living in Springfield, Ohio alone. Across Ohio, Haitians have been summoned to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) offices to receive ankle monitors to detect movement and location. DHS has not published an official justification, though ankle monitors are believed to make it easier for ICE agents to locate immigrants and initiate raids.
Just last week on Aug. 31, the suicide of 20-year-old Wright State University student Pierre
Damas Bel ignited scrutiny of ICE as he took his life after being forced to wear an ankle monitor.
In 2024, Bel and his family legally arrived in the U.S. through CBP Home Mobile Application, a free online application that allowed migrants without entry documents to make appointments at designated access points on the U.S. southern border. This function was removed in Jan. 2025 and currently operates to notify the U.S. Government of intent to self-deport.
Shining in both academics and athletics, Bel’s circumstances changed after being issued an ankle monitor by ICE on July 29. After losing TPS, Bel turned down the chance to play soccer for Wittenberg University and could no longer maintain his ROTC membership.
“I came to this country to pursue my education,” Bel said in an Instagram post. “I didn’t come here to commit a crime or hurt anyone. 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. So now, how am I supposed to play college sports with a GPS monitor on my leg?”
His family also communicated he was bullied due to the ankle monitor.
“After my son was outfitted with an ankle monitor, he felt like he was treated like an animal,” Bel’s father Pierre Ronal Bel said. “He took two trips to Cincinnati and Westerville to plead with the officers to remove the bracelet since he’s a soccer player and he felt embarrassed and humiliated. When he’s among his classmates at the university, he was bullied a lot with a lot of people telling him he’s a criminal.”
On Aug. 31, Bel told his father he wasn’t feeling well mentally because of the bullying. His father told him to come home to talk. That morning, he walked into oncoming traffic on Interstate 70 and took his life.
Bel’s death has brought renewed attention to the consequences of TPS termination, including stigma surrounding immigration. His community has come together to mourn his passing and raise awareness of the uncertainty now facing thousands of Haitian immigrants across Ohio.