Raoul, the son of Haitian immigrants, called former President Donald Trump’s debate night false claim about Haitian immigrants in Ohio abducting and eating pets “super-audacious fear-mongering.”
Haitian Americans in Illinois, including Attorney General Kwame Raoul, are calling former President Donald Trump’s amplification of a false rumor about Haitian immigrants in Ohio eating pets “dangerous” to a community that has already experienced trauma in their native country.
During Tuesday’s debate, Trump brought up a debunked far-right claim that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, are stealing pets to eat. While debate moderator David Muir interjected to say there are no credible reports of the claims, Trump fought back and said that “the people on television [are] saying, ‘my dog was taken and used for food.’” Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris responded with a laugh and said, “Talk about extreme.”
Raoul, the son of Haitian immigrants, called Trump’s mention of the false claim “super-audacious fear-mongering.”
“My initial reaction was, I don’t even want to get offended, because that would reflect me recognizing it as a statement that was coming from somebody that was competent,” Raoul said. “It just reflected his incompetence and instability.”
Raoul said it’s also a disservice to Haitians who have already experienced instability in their native country — and he called it dangerous “because others follow blindly and will repeat it.
