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.

[3][4] Springfield and county law enforcement said that no credible reports or evidence support the claims, and the city's mayor Rob Rue and Ohio governor Mike DeWine, who are both Republicans, have denounced them.

[11] The pet-eating claims spread amid existing racial tensions in Springfield, where recent legal Haitian immigration strained some public resources.

[12] After the claims spread, dozens of bomb threats targeted Springfield schools, hospitals, public buildings, and businesses, often accompanied by anti-Haitian messages.

[25][26][17][27] In June 2024,[28] ongoing crises and severe violence in the Caribbean nation of Haiti led the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to grant temporary protected status to Haitian immigrants,[29] allowing the existing migrant population in the U.S. to live and work without the risk of deportation.

[44][45] Afterwards, a member of the neo-Nazi group Blood Tribe disrupted a Springfield city meeting, introducing himself with an allusion to an anti-black slur and threatening that "crime and savagery will only increase with every Haitian you bring in".

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.

[3][4] Springfield's police department issued a statement that said "there have been no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community".

[61] More than a month after the Reddit post, right-wing sites and influencers publicized the photo, claiming it shows a Haitian immigrant stealing geese in Springfield.

[65] On August 26, Clark County law enforcement dispatchers received a call from someone who said they saw Haitians carrying geese near a Springfield bike trail, but police found no evidence.

[66] The following day, a Springfield resident commented at a city commission meeting, without evidence, that immigrants were "in the park grabbing up ducks by their neck and cutting their head off ... and eating them".

"[75][76][77] Vance responded to criticism of his post on September 10, writing: "In the last several weeks, my office has received many inquiries from actual residents of Springfield who've said their neighbors' pets or local wildlife were abducted by Haitian migrants.

"[87] Moderator David Muir fact-checked Trump, stating that ABC News reached out to the city, whose spokesperson said there were no credible reports or specific claims of such activity.

[94][95] Trump continued to include the claims as part of his campaign messaging, pledging to conduct mass deportations of Haitian immigrants from the city of Springfield, even though the majority of them are in the United States legally.

[111][112] A Vance aide gave The Wall Street Journal a police report from a Springfield resident who said that her pet cat was missing, casting suspicion on her Haitian neighbors.

[121][122] Following amplification and national news, Springfield received dozens of bomb threats accompanied by anti-Haitian messages, targeting schools, hospitals, government buildings, and businesses.

[130][135] The bomb threats continued on September 18 at two local Walmarts, a Kroger, a Planned Parenthood clinic, and the Pregnancy Resource Center of Clark County.

Flyers purporting to be from the Trinity White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan circulated, saying, "Foreigners & Haitians Out" and "Join us and stand against forced immigration.

[157][158] After speaking well of his Haitian employees to news media, a Springfield businessman received death threats, and the FBI advised him to take security precautions for himself, his family, and his business.

"[162] The claims, variously described as debunked, false, or a conspiracy theory, have been widely characterized as a racist attempt to stoke fears or resentment of immigrants for political gain.

[14] A White House spokesperson said that Republicans were making false claims "based on an element of racism",[70] and an editor from the nearby Columbus Dispatch said these were "undeniably racist rumors.

[173] According to the Los Angeles Times, Trump has placed a target on the back of a small group of immigrants by repeating racist disinformation which is disgraceful and deserves ridicule.

[174] South African satirical music creator The Kiffness released a song parodying the hoax, titled "Eating the cats ft. Donald Trump (Debate Remix)", which quickly went viral.

[181][182][183] While the reactions to the post were mostly positive – it was liked more than a hundred thousand times – Norbert Röttgen of the opposition Christian Democratic Union party said, "This is the official account of the Federal Foreign Office.

[186][187] On September 13, during a "Celebration of Black Excellence" brunch event at the White House, President Joe Biden said that Haitian Americans were "under attack in our country right now", describing and denouncing the false rumors and how Trump was spreading them, although not addressing the presidential candidate by name.

[189] Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez condemned Trump and Vance, saying that when they "intentionally distribute incredibly malicious and disgusting claims like about eating pets, etc", they put people at risk of violence.

On September 24, the executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance filed a bench memorandum and affidavit at the Clark County Municipal Court, alleging that Trump and Vance had committed multiple crimes, including "disrupting public services, making false alarms, two counts of complicity, two counts of telecommunications harassment and aggravated menacing", and asking the court to issue arrest warrants.

[197][200] Professor of Sociology Anthony Ocampo told The Guardian that the trope is "low-hanging fruit to rally xenophobia in a very quick way", making it "easier to scapegoat or enact harmful laws against" a community characterized as "savage or uncivilized".

[198] Theologian Russell D. Moore noted that, from the standpoint of Christianity, "[t]o sing praise songs in a church service while trafficking in the bearing of false witness against people who fled for their lives, who are seeking to rebuild a life for their children after crushing poverty and persecution, is more than just cognitive dissonance.

[206] Last Week Tonight with John Oliver included a segment on the hoax and situation in Springfield, detailing the chronology whereby Vance fact-checked the rumors, was aware they were false, and tried to support them with poor evidence.