Nathan Tibert, junior criminal justice major, was born and raised in Haiti. Tibert watched the presidential debate live on Sept. 10. He heard former President Donald Trump say Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating household pets.
“They’re eating the dogs. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating the pets of the people that live there,” Trump said during the debate. “And this is what’s happening in our country, and it’s a shame.”
Tibert thought it was an absurd statement.
“When I first heard it, I honestly just chuckled because of how ridiculous it sounded, especially when he was fact-checked,” Tibert said. “It was just complete hearsay. He was just relaying false information, which he had no proof of.”
The claims have been debunked by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, Springfield City Manager Bryan Heck and David Muir, one of the presidential debate moderators. In response to the claims, more than 30 fake bomb threats have been called in to Springfield schools and government official buildings, including Perrin Woods Elementary School and Roosevelt Middle School.
JD Vance, Trump’s nominee for vice president, acknowledged the claims were false in an interview with CNN on Sept. 15.
“If I have to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people, then that’s what I’m going to do,” Vance said in the interview.
Jihnny Palmer De Giles, Haitian senior international studies major, watched the debate live. When she heard Trump’s claim, she called her best friend, who is also Haitian.
“I asked her, ‘Girl, did you hear what he just said?’ And she was like, ‘Yes, I cannot believe it.’ Her whole entire household was like, ‘This is crazy,’” Palmer De Giles said. “I think it’s really sad for a politician representative, who’s trying to run for president again, to say stuff like that.”
Although Tibert hasn’t been personally affected by the claims, his family members, who just came here a few months ago, have been impacted.
“They feel like their life’s threatened. They feel like they’re all constantly being judged simply because of where they come from, who they are. And I feel like that’s wrong,” Tibert said.
Palmer De Giles, who plans to have a career in international relations, is worried that the statements could impact her profession.
“Going towards my career and knowing someone like this could one day, hopefully not, represent the country, and I would be working for them and with them, it’s not a good pill to swallow,” Palmer De Giles said.
Henry Severe, Haitian senior film major at University of Central Florida, first heard about the claims on social media.
“I first heard it on [X, formerly] Twitter just when it started happening about two weeks ago,” Severe said. “A lot of people have kind of acknowledged that it’s untrue and false. I think it’s annoying to constantly see it on social media.”
Severe said social media plays a key role in spreading misinformation.
“With social media, you can easily curate it to be this kind of echo chamber of things that keep validating the kind of harmful stereotypes and the harmful rhetoric that you already believe,” Severe said.
Tibert is hopeful that the rumors will eventually die down.
“I feel like the Haitian people, they’re so resilient because they always find a way to stand back up no matter what they’re going through. And I know that, even with this current situation, the same thing’s going to happen,” Tibert said.
For students who want to show their support for Haitians, they can research and be wary about the things they come across online.
“If you’re not Haitian, please look into Haitian culture. It’s a beautiful culture with amazing food and great music,” Severe said. “There are amazing people within this community, and I would hope that you don’t let social media and the negative things that politicians are saying about the whole community deny you from making really positive connections with people.”
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