Springfield pet-eating hoax

thumb|right|Springfield City Hall (pictured in 2007), one of several public buildings evacuated after bomb threats stemming from the hoax Starting in September 2024, baseless claims spread online that Haitian immigrants were stealing and eating pets in Springfield, Ohio. The claims began with a local Facebook group post claiming a local cat had been butchered, and spread quickly among far-right and neo-Nazi groups. The claims were then amplified by prominent figures in the American right, most notably Republican Senator and vice-presidential nominee, JD Vance of Ohio, followed by his running mate Donald Trump and allies such as Laura Loomer and Twitter owner Elon Musk.Multiple sources: Jingnan Huo Garsd Jasmine September 10, 2024 JD Vance spreads debunked claims about Haitian immigrants eating pets https://www.npr.org/2024/09/10/nx-s1-5107320/jd-vance-springfield-ohio-haitians-pets live https://web.archive.org/web/20240911122808/https://www.npr.org/2024/09/10/nx-s1-5107320/jd-vance-springfield-ohio-haitians-pets September 11, 2024 September 11, 2024 All Things Considered Brandy Zadrozny September 13, 2024 Before Trump, neo-Nazis pushed false claims about Haitians as part of hate campaign https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/trump-neo-nazis-pushed-false-claims-haitians-part-hate-campaign-rcna170796 September 13, 2024 NBC News en September 13, 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240913152600/https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/trump-neo-nazis-pushed-false-claims-haitians-part-hate-campaign-rcna170796 live Henry J. Gomez Brandy Zadrozny Allan Smith Julie Tsirkin September 13, 2024 How a fringe online claim about immigrants eating pets made its way to the debate stage https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-fringe-online-claim-immigrants-eating-pets-debate-trump-rcna170759 September 13, 2024 NBC News en September 18, 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240918043019/https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-fringe-online-claim-immigrants-eating-pets-debate-trump-rcna170759 live Mangan Dan September 10, 2024 JD Vance false conspiracy about Haitian immigrants is 'dangerous,' Biden NSC spokesman says https://www.cnbc.com/2024/09/10/jd-vance-false-conspiracy-haitian-immigrants-john-kirby.html September 10, 2024 CNBC September 11, 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240911123200/https://www.cnbc.com/2024/09/10/jd-vance-false-conspiracy-haitian-immigrants-john-kirby.html live Maher Kit September 10, 2024 Vance says false claim he spread against Haitian migrants may not be true but urges followers to keep posting 'cat memes' https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/10/politics/jd-vance-haitian-immigrants/index.html September 10, 2024 CNN September 10, 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240910185039/https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/10/politics/jd-vance-haitian-immigrants/index.html live Austin Williams September 10, 2024 Trump falsely claims migrants in Ohio are eating pets during debate https://www.foxla.com/news/trump-false-claims-migrants-eating-pets September 11, 2024 FOX TV Digital Team en-US September 14, 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240914191536/https://www.foxla.com/news/trump-false-claims-migrants-eating-pets live September 11, 2024 Trump falsely accuses immigrants in Ohio of abducting and eating pets Mike Catalini Julie Carr Smyth Bruce Shipkowski https://apnews.com/article/haitian-immigrants-vance-trump-ohio-6e4a47c52b23ae2c802d216369512ca5 September 11, 2024 Associated Press en September 11, 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240911190612/https://apnews.com/article/haitian-immigrants-vance-trump-ohio-6e4a47c52b23ae2c802d216369512ca5 live https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/sep/12/laura-loomer-trump-pet-eating-claim Republicans point finger at Laura Loomer for Trump's pet-eating rant Robert Tait September 12, 2024 The Guardian September 14, 2024 September 14, 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240914180112/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/sep/12/laura-loomer-trump-pet-eating-claim live Subsequently, the author of the original Facebook post and the neighbor who told her the story admitted it was based on a rumor from people with whom they had not spoken.Chavez Julio-Cesar September 12, 2024 Bomb threat in city at heart of Trump immigrant rumors sparks evacuation https://www.reuters.com/world/us/bomb-threat-city-heart-trump-immigrant-rumors-sparks-evacuation-2024-09-12/ September 12, 2024 Reuters Facebook post The cat rumor stemmed from a post made in early September to a private Facebook group called "Springfield Ohio Crime and Information", and that post was later re-posted elsewhere. The author of the Facebook post later deleted it and expressed regret that the story fueled conspiracy theories.Lozano Alicia Victoria September 13, 2024 'It just exploded': Springfield woman claims she never meant to spark false rumors about Haitians https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/-just-exploded-springfield-woman-says-never-meant-spark-rumors-haitian-rcna171099 live https://web.archive.org/web/20240918034648/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/-just-exploded-springfield-woman-says-never-meant-spark-rumors-haitian-rcna171099 September 18, 2024 September 14, 2024 NBC News enTimotija Filip September 14, 2014 Woman whose post ignited false Springfield cat claim says it was based on rumor https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/4879994-springfield-rumor-haitian-immigrants-facebook-post/ live https://web.archive.org/web/20240916235835/https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/4879994-springfield-rumor-haitian-immigrants-facebook-post/ September 16, 2024 September 17, 2024 The Hill The neighbor who initially relayed the story said that she wasn't "the most credible source", and clarified that it was not her daughter's friend but just a rumor she heard from a friend's acquaintance.Brewster Jack Howard Sam September 12, 2024 Triple Hearsay: Original Sources of the Claim that Haitians Eat Pets in Ohio Admit No First-Hand Knowledge https://www.newsguardrealitycheck.com/p/origins-haitians-eating-pets-claim September 12, 2024 NewsGuard's Reality Check en September 13, 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240913005920/https://www.newsguardrealitycheck.com/p/origins-haitians-eating-pets-claim live Warning to all about our beloved pets & those around us!! My neighbor informed me that her daughter’s friend had lost her cat. She checked pages, kennels, asked around, etc. One day she came home from work, as soon as she stepped out of her car, looked towards a neighbors house, where Haitians live, & saw her cat hanging from a branch, like you'd do a deer for butchering, & they were carving it up to eat. I've been told they are doing this to dogs, they have been doing it at snyder park with the ducks & geese, as I was told that last bit by Rangers & police. Please keep a close eye Origin of Trump and JD Vance's lies about Haitian immigrants eating pets revealed. Harris–Trump presidential debate Following his running mate's elevation of this rumor, the rumor was elevated further by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.Bash, Dana. “Rush Transcript https://web.archive.org/web/20240918063901/https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/sotu/date/2024-09-15/segment/01 September 18, 2024 ”, CNN (September 15, 2024): “Before Donald Trump talked about eating dogs and cats on a debate stage, it was you Senator who first elevated this rumor, these are your constituents.” In Springfield, they're eating the dogs, the people that came in, they're eating the cats. They're eating the pets of the people that live there Presidential debate recap: Harris attacks Trump over abortion, immigration, crimes References Category:Hoax