Trump Campaign Amplifies False Claim About Haitian Migrants in Ohio

The Trump campaign promoted an outlandish false claim on Monday that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, have abducted and eaten their neighbors’ pets, again demonizing migrants as the campaign seeks to attack Vice President Kamala Harris on immigration.

A news release from the campaign on Monday recounted the falsehoods, which were amplified earlier in the day by former President Donald J. Trump’s running mate, JD Vance, and sought to stoke fear, saying “it’s coming to your city next.”

Mr. Vance, as Ohio’s junior senator, has in recent months attacked the growing Haitian population in Springfield, a group whose members are living and working in the United States legally. Job opportunities in Springfield have attracted thousands of Haitians since the pandemic, with city officials estimating that as many as 20,000 have arrived. By most accounts, the immigrant community has helped revitalize the town, though it has put pressure on housing, schools and hospitals. (Springfield had roughly 58,000 people as of the last census in 2020.)

Resentment has also brewed among some residents over the immigrants’ presence, and those emotions have bubbled over since an immigrant driver was involved in a fatal school bus crash last year. Mr. Vance has latched onto the complaints of community members and has denounced the Haitians as being in the United States illegally, “draining social services” and “generally causing chaos.”

Other prominent Republican elected officials and organizations, including Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, the House Republican campaign arm and the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee, promoted false claims about pets or park wildlife being eaten on Monday.

The notion stems from viral social media posts that city officials say there is no evidence for.

Karen Graves, a spokeswoman for the city of Springfield, said in a statement that “there have been no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community.” The city’s police division also said it had received no reports related to pets being stolen and eaten, according to The Springfield-News Sun.

And Leann Castillo, the executive director for the Clark County Park District, said that they “have absolutely no evidence of this happening.” Ms. Castillo said that the false claim had spread for months and that “random people will call and ask” about it.

A spokesman for Mr. Vance did not provide evidence to support the claim, but said his remarks were made in response to a high volume of calls and emails over the past several weeks from concerned Springfield residents, who have at times packed city commission meetings to air their complaints.

Some residents, in those meetings, have accused their Haitian neighbors of invading the town — echoing the ominous “border invasion” language used by Mr. Trump, who sees his harsh rhetoric on the border and immigration as a winning campaign strategy.

The false claims being promoted by the Trump campaign tapped into old racist stereotypes that have been directed at immigrants, accusing them of abducting and killing animals to cook and eat or, in the case of Haitian migrants, using them in religious sacrifices.

Haiti and migrants from the country, who are overwhelmingly Black, have been the focus of Mr. Trump’s vitriol before. In 2021, Mr. Trump said that Haitian migrants were spreading AIDS to the United States, saying “it’s like a death wish for our country.” Mr. Trump has also referred to Haiti as a “shithole” country in remarks denigrating Haitian immigrants.

Miriam Jordan contributed reporting.