Trump claims migrants led to a 'surge in crime' in a small Wisconsin city, but locals disagree.
Donald Trump's campaign is centered around the notion that “bloodthirsty” immigrants are overtaking communities throughout the United States.
TroibNews 
**WHITEWATER, Wisconsin** — Keylin Sarahi arrived here approximately seven months after escaping her home country of Nicaragua. She recounted feeling “afraid” due to individuals who “threatened to kill us.” Sarahi has grown fond of Whitewater, a college town of roughly 15,000 residents in southeastern Wisconsin.
“It’s a very peaceful place, very pretty,” Sarahi, 27, expressed in Spanish.
However, Whitewater is part of a narrative that Donald Trump has constructed around U.S. towns he asserts have been inundated by dangerous immigrants, similar to places like Springfield, Ohio; Aurora, Colorado; and Charleroi, Pennsylvania.
According to Trump, housing prices in Whitewater have “soared,” “diseases are spreading like wildfire,” and “police can’t handle the surge in crime” after being “flooded … with an estimated 2,000 migrants from Venezuela and Nicaragua, very tough ones, very tough people in that group.”
During a rally in nearby Prairie du Chien, Trump warned, “If Kamala is reelected, your town and every town just like it… will be transformed into a Third World hell hole.”
In Whitewater — as well as Charleroi, Springfield, and Aurora — local officials, many of whom are Republicans or nonpartisan, consistently refute his claims and criticize the former president for rhetoric that they believe distracts from actual community challenges.
“I mean this in all respect to everyone in their beliefs and where they’re at, but it’s like regular people wandering around Whitewater. It’s all very normal. And sure, there’s more people who speak Spanish, but we had people who spoke Spanish before,” said Whitewater city manager John Weidl, emphasizing the nonpartisan nature of his position while choosing not to disclose his party affiliation.
In Springfield, Trump alleged that Haitian migrants were “destroying their way of life.” His campaign characterized Aurora as a “war zone” overtaken by a ruthless Venezuelan gang. Trump also claimed that Charleroi’s housing market had been “destroyed” by immigrants and asserted that “crime is rampant.”
Whitewater’s police chief, Dan Meyer, countered Trump’s assertion of a crime surge in the town. He acknowledged that the arrival of about 1,000 migrants has created challenges for the 24 police officers, mainly due to issues with unlicensed drivers and a shortage of translators. Meyer stated that the immigrant population is “generally speaking, no more likely to commit a crime than any other [member of] the existing population we have here.”
“I really think the vast majority of people are supportive” of the immigrant community, Meyer added, “and those who aren’t probably haven’t had a whole lot of interactions, or have had a few interactions that weren’t all that positive. But it’s not based on anything other than perception.”
In a statement to PMG, Republican National Committee spokesperson Anna Kelly, representing the Trump campaign, did not directly address the Whitewater officials' denials of Trump’s claims, but commented that “Local officials in communities across the country have sounded the alarm about problems caused by Kamala Harris’ open border.” She also remarked, “Every state is a border state” and emphasized that “Only President Trump will Make America Safe Again.”
Trump and his allies first focused on Whitewater after Meyer and Weidl sent a letter to President Joe Biden last year seeking federal resources to manage challenges posed by rapid demographic changes. Meyer noted, “None of this information is shared as a means of denigrating or vilifying this group of people,” and emphasized, “In fact, we see great value in the increasing diversity that this group brings to our community.” Shortly thereafter, right-wing media outlet Breitbart published an article headlined “Biden floods small Wisconsin town with 1,000 migrants.”
In Springfield, Mayor Rob Rue and Gov. Mike DeWine — both Republicans — have publicly criticized Trump for promoting a false conspiracy suggesting Haitian migrants were consuming residents’ pets. Despite the confusion and chaos that erupted in the town, leading to bomb threats shutting down schools and hospitals, Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, stood by their erroneous statements.
Similarly, Aurora Republican Mayor Mike Coffman issued a statement prior to Trump’s rally in the city, wherein Trump claimed Harris had “imported an army of illegal alien gang members and migrant criminals from the dungeons of the Third World” to “pray upon innocent American citizens.” Coffman challenged that narrative, calling the event “an opportunity to show him and the nation that Aurora is a considerably safe city – not a city overrun by Venezuelan gangs.”
In both Springfield and Charleroi, officials have welcomed the migrants, asserting that they invigorate the struggling economies of their rust belt towns.
Despite this, some residents still align with Trump’s version of reality. Residents in Springfield shared with PMG their beliefs that Haitians were indeed preying on local pets, while others in Aurora expressed fears about letting their children go out alone or visit nearby Denver, where many migrants have recently been transported.
“There are people who believe it, who believe that it’s not hyperbole, that it’s not political, that it is the truth,” commented Kristine Zaballos, co-founder of Whitewater’s Community Space, which provides free food, clothing, toys, books, and housewares to residents. “And they say that because they see it over and over again and they hear it over and over again. And so that creates an increasing divide within our community, just like there is within the United States, about what reality is.”
Trump's rhetoric on immigration is central to his campaign and is increasingly characterized by nativist and racially charged undertones. According to the 2024 GOP platform, undocumented immigrants, supposedly allowed to roam freely by Democrats, are scapegoated for inflation, compromised “election integrity,” and rising crime rates. Promising mass deportations on his first day in office, Trump also connects these actions to plans for steep tariffs and extensive deregulation to stimulate the economy for what he terms the “forgotten men and women of America.”
Illegal border crossings reached unprecedented levels during President Biden’s tenure, and the topic resonates with Trump’s supporters, who are attempting to make it the priority issue of the upcoming election season. Throughout his campaign, Trump has sought to illustrate the dangers of migrant crime in communities nationwide.
Yet in Whitewater, residents have largely united to support their neighbors, both old and new. The city’s government provides various immigrant resources on its website, including an “immigrant self help guide,” and collaborates with a local immigration support coalition to create a bilingual video series aimed at assisting newcomers in understanding local regulations and customs, according to Zaballos.
“It’s just a pretty amazing thing because the culture is just, nobody looks at them like, what are you doing here? Everybody’s just kind of okay,” noted Kay Robers, another co-founder of the Community Space. In 2023 alone, the organization distributed over 211,000 pounds of food and 144,000 pounds of clothing to nearly 25,000 visitors.
With a poverty rate hovering at 32.5 percent according to 2022 Census data — significantly above Wisconsin's state average — Robers mentioned noticing an uptick in white families utilizing the Community Space, as they struggle to afford groceries.
“Problem is, everybody worries about the middle class and upper class, but what about the people underneath them?” queried Michael Godding, 80, while waiting in line at the Community Space alongside Sarahi.
As the election approaches, both Kamala Harris and Trump returned to Wisconsin to present their contrasting visions of the nation.
“I would tell them both the exact same thing,” Weidl said when asked if he had a message for Harris and Trump.
“Please be safe and please tell the truth. Because Whitewater is a safe community, we’re a university community, we’re a diverse community, and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.”
Jason Beeferman contributed to this report.
Camille Lefevre for TROIB News
“It’s a very peaceful place, very pretty,” Sarahi, 27, expressed in Spanish.
However, Whitewater is part of a narrative that Donald Trump has constructed around U.S. towns he asserts have been inundated by dangerous immigrants, similar to places like Springfield, Ohio; Aurora, Colorado; and Charleroi, Pennsylvania.
According to Trump, housing prices in Whitewater have “soared,” “diseases are spreading like wildfire,” and “police can’t handle the surge in crime” after being “flooded … with an estimated 2,000 migrants from Venezuela and Nicaragua, very tough ones, very tough people in that group.”
During a rally in nearby Prairie du Chien, Trump warned, “If Kamala is reelected, your town and every town just like it… will be transformed into a Third World hell hole.”
In Whitewater — as well as Charleroi, Springfield, and Aurora — local officials, many of whom are Republicans or nonpartisan, consistently refute his claims and criticize the former president for rhetoric that they believe distracts from actual community challenges.
“I mean this in all respect to everyone in their beliefs and where they’re at, but it’s like regular people wandering around Whitewater. It’s all very normal. And sure, there’s more people who speak Spanish, but we had people who spoke Spanish before,” said Whitewater city manager John Weidl, emphasizing the nonpartisan nature of his position while choosing not to disclose his party affiliation.
In Springfield, Trump alleged that Haitian migrants were “destroying their way of life.” His campaign characterized Aurora as a “war zone” overtaken by a ruthless Venezuelan gang. Trump also claimed that Charleroi’s housing market had been “destroyed” by immigrants and asserted that “crime is rampant.”
Whitewater’s police chief, Dan Meyer, countered Trump’s assertion of a crime surge in the town. He acknowledged that the arrival of about 1,000 migrants has created challenges for the 24 police officers, mainly due to issues with unlicensed drivers and a shortage of translators. Meyer stated that the immigrant population is “generally speaking, no more likely to commit a crime than any other [member of] the existing population we have here.”
“I really think the vast majority of people are supportive” of the immigrant community, Meyer added, “and those who aren’t probably haven’t had a whole lot of interactions, or have had a few interactions that weren’t all that positive. But it’s not based on anything other than perception.”
In a statement to PMG, Republican National Committee spokesperson Anna Kelly, representing the Trump campaign, did not directly address the Whitewater officials' denials of Trump’s claims, but commented that “Local officials in communities across the country have sounded the alarm about problems caused by Kamala Harris’ open border.” She also remarked, “Every state is a border state” and emphasized that “Only President Trump will Make America Safe Again.”
Trump and his allies first focused on Whitewater after Meyer and Weidl sent a letter to President Joe Biden last year seeking federal resources to manage challenges posed by rapid demographic changes. Meyer noted, “None of this information is shared as a means of denigrating or vilifying this group of people,” and emphasized, “In fact, we see great value in the increasing diversity that this group brings to our community.” Shortly thereafter, right-wing media outlet Breitbart published an article headlined “Biden floods small Wisconsin town with 1,000 migrants.”
In Springfield, Mayor Rob Rue and Gov. Mike DeWine — both Republicans — have publicly criticized Trump for promoting a false conspiracy suggesting Haitian migrants were consuming residents’ pets. Despite the confusion and chaos that erupted in the town, leading to bomb threats shutting down schools and hospitals, Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, stood by their erroneous statements.
Similarly, Aurora Republican Mayor Mike Coffman issued a statement prior to Trump’s rally in the city, wherein Trump claimed Harris had “imported an army of illegal alien gang members and migrant criminals from the dungeons of the Third World” to “pray upon innocent American citizens.” Coffman challenged that narrative, calling the event “an opportunity to show him and the nation that Aurora is a considerably safe city – not a city overrun by Venezuelan gangs.”
In both Springfield and Charleroi, officials have welcomed the migrants, asserting that they invigorate the struggling economies of their rust belt towns.
Despite this, some residents still align with Trump’s version of reality. Residents in Springfield shared with PMG their beliefs that Haitians were indeed preying on local pets, while others in Aurora expressed fears about letting their children go out alone or visit nearby Denver, where many migrants have recently been transported.
“There are people who believe it, who believe that it’s not hyperbole, that it’s not political, that it is the truth,” commented Kristine Zaballos, co-founder of Whitewater’s Community Space, which provides free food, clothing, toys, books, and housewares to residents. “And they say that because they see it over and over again and they hear it over and over again. And so that creates an increasing divide within our community, just like there is within the United States, about what reality is.”
Trump's rhetoric on immigration is central to his campaign and is increasingly characterized by nativist and racially charged undertones. According to the 2024 GOP platform, undocumented immigrants, supposedly allowed to roam freely by Democrats, are scapegoated for inflation, compromised “election integrity,” and rising crime rates. Promising mass deportations on his first day in office, Trump also connects these actions to plans for steep tariffs and extensive deregulation to stimulate the economy for what he terms the “forgotten men and women of America.”
Illegal border crossings reached unprecedented levels during President Biden’s tenure, and the topic resonates with Trump’s supporters, who are attempting to make it the priority issue of the upcoming election season. Throughout his campaign, Trump has sought to illustrate the dangers of migrant crime in communities nationwide.
Yet in Whitewater, residents have largely united to support their neighbors, both old and new. The city’s government provides various immigrant resources on its website, including an “immigrant self help guide,” and collaborates with a local immigration support coalition to create a bilingual video series aimed at assisting newcomers in understanding local regulations and customs, according to Zaballos.
“It’s just a pretty amazing thing because the culture is just, nobody looks at them like, what are you doing here? Everybody’s just kind of okay,” noted Kay Robers, another co-founder of the Community Space. In 2023 alone, the organization distributed over 211,000 pounds of food and 144,000 pounds of clothing to nearly 25,000 visitors.
With a poverty rate hovering at 32.5 percent according to 2022 Census data — significantly above Wisconsin's state average — Robers mentioned noticing an uptick in white families utilizing the Community Space, as they struggle to afford groceries.
“Problem is, everybody worries about the middle class and upper class, but what about the people underneath them?” queried Michael Godding, 80, while waiting in line at the Community Space alongside Sarahi.
As the election approaches, both Kamala Harris and Trump returned to Wisconsin to present their contrasting visions of the nation.
“I would tell them both the exact same thing,” Weidl said when asked if he had a message for Harris and Trump.
“Please be safe and please tell the truth. Because Whitewater is a safe community, we’re a university community, we’re a diverse community, and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.”
Jason Beeferman contributed to this report.
Camille Lefevre for TROIB News
