Draft:Springfield, Ohio, pet-eating hoax

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Springfield, Ohio, pet-eating hoax could use some help. Please research the article's assertions. Whatever is credible should be sourced, and what is not should be removed.

“”They’re eating the dogs. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating the pets of the people that live there.

—Trump, during the presidential debate.

Around September 2024, a hoax began to circulate online about immigrants (specifically Haitian immigrants) eating other people’s pets. Despite there being no proof of this, it has been picked up by many far-right groups, exacerbating the anti-immigrant rhetoric push. The hoax became so popular that during the September 10th 2024 Presidential Debate, it was repeated by Donald Trump, as seen by the quote above. The quote became a viral meme soundbite, remixed and replayed ad nauseam.

Origins[edit]

The hoax started from a Facebook group post by a person saying that they were told by someone else that their daughter’s friend’s cat has been butchered. The original poster later expressed regret over their post due to how it got picked up by conspiracy theorists.^[1]

This has been picked up by some far-right groups to try to justify their bigotry against immigrants. The most notable one being a Neo-Nazi group, named “Blood Tribe”, claiming responsibility for spreading the hoax.

Other wingnuts picked up this hoax and spread it again, notably Laura Loomer and J.D. Vance, Trump's Vice President pick.^{[note 1]} Other politicians like Clay Higgins, the state Representative and Bernie Moreno, a Republican senate candidate for Ohio also repeated the hoax.

Continued Spread[edit]

File:IMAGE HERE

Yes, this was a paid billboard…

Laura Loomer would go on to say on ~~Twitter~~ X, that the “Biden-Harris regime imported over 20,000 cannibalistic Haitians who are now killing people’s pets and hunting domestic animals”. Ted Cruz would also go on to post a meme on X that had the caption saying: “Please vote for Trump, so Haitian immigrants don't eat us“.^[2]

The Arizona Republican Party would post “Eat Less Kittens” billboards ads repeating the hoax.^[3]

Presidential Debate and Spread[edit]

During the 2024 presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, Trump infamously reiterated the claim that the Haitian immigrants in Ohio were eating the resident's cats and dogs, to Kamala’s laughter. Due to how batshit insane the statement was, it became a viral meme, the soundbite spreading, and even having its own remix, which also spread. Charlie Kirk also came to believe the spread of the meme was proof that Generation Z was in support of Trump, while the memes were obviously made in mockery.^[4]

Consequences[edit]

The hoax, as well as its spread, has unfortunately led to an unexpected rise in acts of violence towards Haitians (more broadly black) in Springfield, as well as bomb threats, continuing the association between the far-right and domestic terrorism.

A jazz event, named the Springfield Jazz & Blues Fest, was interrupted by Neo-Nazis with rifles, expectedly gesturing Nazi salutes. ^[5]

Several public buildings, such as schools and government buildings, had to be evacuated and closed due to threats.^[6]^[7]^[8] Some hospitals and other medical research insititutes had to also be evacuated or locked down due to threats.^[9] There were other grocery stores that had faced threats (Walmart, Kroger). A Planned Parenthood Clinic and another pregnancy clinic had also received threats.^[10] The Ohio Governor, Mike DeWine, said that the city had at least been “33 bomb threats”, some coming from outside the country.^[11]

This has gotten so bad that the FBI had to get involved. The Governor also had to get 36 State Police Troopers to the city and its schools to ensure safety, police surveillance also had to increase as well.^[12]^[13] The mayor, Rob Rue, called for help, stating that “we need help, not hate”. On September 19th, he would declare a short-term emergency powers to deal with the situation.^[14] The mayor had also stated that he, along with his family, and other city leaders, had also been the victims of death threats, with some being swatted.^[15]

The Haitian Times would also be the recipient of vile messages, and one of its editors, who ran a story on the impact of it all, would later be swatted.^[16]^[17]^[18]

One Haitian nonprofit has filed criminal charges against the main two dickheads (Trump and Vance) that were spreading the hoax, for hate speech.^[19] There goes more charges against Trump, now Vance will be in legal troubles too, if he wasn’t already. Though since, they unfortunately won the election, they may as well wipe themselves of the consequences, seeing as how it isn’t their thing.

Any proof?[edit]

Springfield officials denied this story, though this hasn’t dissuaded violence or slowed the spread of the hoax.

J.D. Vance would later justify in an interview why he spread lies in order to “help” the campaign, he was quoted as saying: “If I have to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering^{[note 2]} of the American people, then that's what I'm going to do.”^[20] One of his staffers reached out to Springfield’s city manager, Brian Heck, about the story if it was true or not. Heck told them no; “There was no verifiable evidence or reports to show this was true. I told them these claims were baseless” he stated.^[21] Bryan would also go on to call this hoax, not just mere misinformation, but disinformation.^[22] Vance would also go on to say that there is the possibly this could all be false, but to nonetheless keep posting “cat memes”.^[23] His motivation is basically based on something he fails to prove the harm of, that being illegal immigration^{[note 3]}, which in turn has caused more harm than the perceived harm he claims to have been present, which is based on a certain type of bias.

As for the orange clown, when asked to denounce the threats he caused, he stated “I don't know what happened with the bomb threats. I know that it's been taken over by illegal migrants and that's a terrible thing that happened”.^[24] He added “Springfield was this beautiful town and now they’re going through hell. It’s a sad thing. Not gonna happen with me, I can tell you right now.”

Notes[edit]

↑ Which is the same guy against cat ladies, apparently.
↑ Said suffering is false, but the hoax did cause some suffering.
↑ To note, the immigrants are mostly legal and documented immigrants that have helped the city through their contribution. The city’s economy was weakening beforehand.

References[edit]

[2] Which is the same guy against cat ladies, apparently.

[21] Said suffering is false, but the hoax did cause some suffering.

[26] To note, the immigrants are mostly legal and documented immigrants that have helped the city through their contribution. The city’s economy was weakening beforehand.

[1] Triple Hearsay: Original Sources of the Claim that Haitians Eat Pets in Ohio Admit No First-Hand Knowledge

[3] Laura Loomer: Far-right influencer posted about pet-eating migrants. She's in Trump's orbit

[4] Arizona GOP Launches 'Eat Less Kittens' Billboards Referencing Unfounded Conspiracy Theory

[5] ‘Trump has the culture’: GOP influencers don’t realize ‘they’re eating the dogs’ TikTok remix is mocking them

[6] Neo-Nazis holding rifles and swastika flags march during Ohio musical festival

[7] Springfield, Ohio, schools evacuate students after threats, officials say

[8] Springfield mayor seeks ‘help not hate’ as more bomb threats close schools, offices

[9] Bomb threats force second consecutive day of school closures in Springfield, Ohio

[10] Two Springfield, Ohio, hospitals locked down as more bomb threats rock city amid migrant crisis tensions

[11] Multiple grocery stores, clinics forced to evacuate after bomb threats in Springfield

[12] Ohio GOP Gov. DeWine says ‘at least 33’ bomb threats prompt Springfield to begin daily school sweeps

[13] Ohio Governor Sends State Police to Springfield After Rash of Bomb Scares

[14] Springfield gears up for a visit from Trump

[15] Springfield’s mayor claims emergency powers to ‘mitigate public safety concerns’ as threats continue to swarm city

[16] Ohio Gov. DeWine says 33 bomb threats have been made in recent days, all hoaxes

[17] A news site that covers Haitian Americans is facing harassment over its post-debate coverage of Ohio

[18] The Haitian Times covered the false claims targeting Springfield. Now it’s also facing attacks

[19] Bomb threats following false claims targeting Haitians continue to disrupt Springfield

[20] Haitian nonprofit files criminal charges against Trump and Vance over Springfield hate speech

[22] Vance defends spreading claims that Haitian migrants are eating pets

[23] How the Trump Campaign Ran With Rumors About Pet-Eating Migrants—After Being Told They Weren’t True

[24] Springfield city manager slams immigration 'rumors' and 'disinformation'

[25] Vance says false claim he spread against Haitian migrants may not be true but urges followers to keep posting ‘cat memes’

[27] Trump Dodges Springfield Bomb Threat Question After Spreading Racist Lie: 'IDK' About It

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