A neo-Nazi group is taking credit for creating and spreading the racist conspiracy that Haitian immigrants are killing and eating pets in Springfield, Ohio.
The leader of the group Blood Tribe, Christopher Pohlhaus, celebrated on his Telegram channel on Wednesday, after the presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris the day before where Trump brought up the false rumor.
The neo-Nazi group “pushed Springfield into the public consciousness,” Pohlhaus, known as “Hammer” to his followers, wrote on Telegram, according to NBC News.
“The president is talking about it now,” one of Blood Tribe’s members wrote on Gab, a social network popular with the far right. “This is what real power looks like.”
While the exact origin of the rumor is unclear, it was at least amplified and spread by the neo-Nazi group. In late June, local Facebook groups in Ohio were posting about Haitian children chasing geese and ducks. In the next few weeks, darker rumors spread about the ducks and geese going missing and possibly being eaten by Haitian immigrants.
In August, Blood Tribe picked up on the rumors and started posting about them on Telegram and Gab. Members of the racist organization marched in Springfield in Ohio in early August and spoke at some of the town’s meetings.
I want to apologize. I've been saying that the GOP cooked up these fake Haitian stories a week ago as an election ploy.
— Zaid Jilani (@ZaidJilani) September 10, 2024
But this young man was discussing issue as early as August 27. He attended a town hall meeting to speak out.
He's a leader in the Neo-Nazi group Blood Pride. pic.twitter.com/PcReF05muc
From there, the false story was picked up by the right-wing End Wokeness account on X, which last week posted a screenshot from a Facebook post and a picture of a man holding some kind of bird walking down a street. The picture wasn’t from Springfield, though: It was taken in Columbus, Ohio, on July 28, and the photographer has apologized and admitted he doesn’t know the ethnicity of the man.
Still, a post on Reddit made the rumor go viral, with right-wing influencers soon creating A.I.-generated pictures of Trump protecting pets, specifically cats. Politicians from Ted Cruz to vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance picked up on it before Trump mentioned it in Tuesday night’s debate. Now the increased attention is causing problems in the town, leading to threats against town buildings and elementary schools, as well as a condemnation from the mayor. A family’s deceased son has been used as a political tool, much to their outrage. Republican leaders need to face the fact that this false story is not ammunition for their immigration policies but is rooted in racism and needs to stop.
