Aliya Schneider, The Philadelphia Inquirer; Immigrants were revitalizing tiny Charleroi. Then Donald Trump’s attacks brought white supremacists and conservative influencers.
"Her customers hadn’t been going out much since Trump began disparaging andspreading lies about Haitian immigrants, first in Springfield, Ohio, and soon after, in Charleroi, where he falsely said Haitian immigrants brought a crime surge and financial strain to the town, claiming that it’s on the precipice of bankruptcy.
Quickly, the former president’s claims thrust the small town, where, in reality, crime was down and bankruptcy was nowhere on the horizon, into an unwanted national spotlight, exposing fault lines and ratcheting up anxiety and tensions that show little sign of abating weeks later.
Trump’s attacks on the Western Pennsylvania town appear to have emboldened people whose views once seemed to sit on the fringes...
Joe Manning, the borough manager in Charleroi, said the town that originally seemed to welcome immigrants has been tainted since Trump’s comments.
“By and large, these folks have received a lot of support in this community,” Manning said. " … But now, that seems to have changed. I don’t know if it’s ever going to go back to the way it was.”
And while the former president’s comments were directed at the Haitian community in Charleroi, his claims impact immigrants from across the globe."
