 "Are US migrants eating pet cats and ducks? Bizarre rumour pushed by Donald Trump")
Are migrants to the US eating pet cats?
That’s what Donald Trump has said during his debate against Vice President Kamala Harris.
While attacking Harris, the former president unleashed a barrage of attacks and made some factually incorrect claims. One of the most bizarre moments of the debate was when Trump repeated an unsubstantiated claim that immigrants are eating pets in an Ohio town.
This is after some in the right-wing, including JD Vance and Elon Musk want people to believe ahead of the US election.
The false claims that Haitian migrants in the city of Springfield, Ohio are stealing pets such as cats and ducks and cooking and eating them went viral on social media.
But what do we know? How did this rumour get started? Who is pushing this fake news? And why is this happening?
Let’s take a closer look:
What happened?
The rumour reportedly began on a Springfield Facebook group.
According to the Huffington Post, the social media post claimed that a neighbour’s daughter’s friend’s cat went missing.
The cat was later discovered hanging off a tree from their neighbour’s home.
The neighbour, a Haitian, was supposedly preparing the cat to be eaten.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThe Springfield News-Sun on Monday reported that the police have “received no reports related to pets being stolen and eaten”.
The Times of India quoted the police as saying they were aware of the post but that this is “not something that’s on our radar right now.”
Another post, by self-proclaimed social media influencer Anthony Harris, claimed that Haitian immigrants “are in the park, grabbing up ducks by the neck, and cutting the heads off and walking off with them, and eating them.”
Harris offered no evidence to back up his claims.
Who is amplifying these false claims?
Many in the right-wing including vice presidential candidate JD Vance, X owner Elon Musk, and Republican Senator Ted Cruz are amplifying these false stories.
Vance, himself from Ohio, posted on X:
Months ago, I raised the issue of Haitian illegal immigrants draining social services and generally causing chaos all over Springfield, Ohio.
— JD Vance (@JDVance) September 9, 2024
Reports now show that people have had their pets abducted and eaten by people who shouldn't be in this country. Where is our border czar? pic.twitter.com/rf0EDIeI5i
The Republican House judiciary account put up an AI-generated image of Trump:
Protect our ducks and kittens in Ohio! pic.twitter.com/YnTZStPnsg
— House Judiciary GOP 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@JudiciaryGOP) September 9, 2024
Musk, the self-proclaimed free speech absolutist, also put up an AI-generated image of a cat and a duck:
Save them! 😢 pic.twitter.com/aLMPTJIPd9
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 9, 2024
Cruz also shared an image of two cats hugging which read, “Please vote for Trump so Haitian immigrants don’t eat us.”
It wasn’t just politicians sharing this fake news with the public.
A number of right-wing commentators also added their own voices to the chorus of false information.
One wrote, “Clover is voting for Trump because she doesn’t want to be eaten by Haitians. Save the cats! Vote Trump!”
Another added, “Wow!!! The Cat Ladies for Trump is GOING VIRAL! It turns out the childless cat ladies like their cats more than they dislike Trump. Incredible!”
“Cats for Trump. Dogs for Trump. Geese for Trump. Vote Trump or get extinct,” another MAGA faithful wrote on X.
Why is this happening?
The right-wing is pushing this fake news in an attempt to place immigration at the center of the upcoming US election.
They think Harris, the vice president in the Biden administration, is vulnerable when it comes to the topic of illegal immigration – which many voters see as a concern.
Ironically, all the data show that immigrants are far more law abiding than native Americans.
The stories also have clear racial undertones – which is a clear dog-whistle from Trump to his MAGA base.
Trump, remember, has already attacked Harris’ racial identity by accusing her of ‘turning black.’
As The Bulwark editor-at-large and Conservative columnist Bill Cristol pointed out what was really at play here:
Seeing some people saying, Hey, JD Vance and MAGA and GOP types “fell for” the fake story from Springfield, Ohio, about Haitians stealing and eating Real Americans’™️ cats. They didn’t “fall for” anything. They eagerly embraced a fake story. Why?
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) September 9, 2024
To promote nativism and racism.
Expect more of such false claims as the election draws nearer and nearer.
With inputs from agencies
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