© Peter Carr/The Journal News / USA TODAY NETWORK
(Elmont, NY) — Haitian-Americans on Long Island are calling on former President Trump to apologize for what he said during Tuesday night’s debate about Haitian immigrants eating pets. Nassau County Legislator Carrie Solages was among those who spoke at a Haitian church in Elmont Thursday (September 12, 2024), calling the comments racist, untrue, un-American and anti-immigrant.
In one of the wilder moments during Tuesday’s (September 10th) debate Trump said immigrants are eating dogs and cats in Springfield, Ohio, after social media posts circulated the internet. Trump’s running mate JD Vance and other high-profile individuals have shared online posts referencing the false claims that people who are in the area illegally have been abducting and eating pets.
City of Springfield spokesperson Karen Graves says local leaders have gotten “no credible reports or specific claims of pets being, harmed, injured, or abused.” City leaders have requested federal funding to support social services for the thousands of legal immigrants who have moved into the community in recent years, but they have not referenced any kind of criminal activity.
Haitian leaders on Long Island are also demanding that local Republicans condemn the comments ahead of Trump’s rally at Nassau Coliseum planned for September 18th.
