long before immigrants were accused of eating pets in Springfield Ohio there was a tragic car crash that turned into an uproar over immigration last year a Haitian immigrant without a license drove a van into a bus killing 11-year-old Aiden Clark about a quarter of Springfield 60,000 residents are recent migrants from Haiti who've brought New Economic potential to a Rust Belt City but also sparked anger we're not taken anymore some residents are speaking out against the newcomers who's responsible for that and who can stop them from coming then came social media claims that migrants were abducting possibly eating pets it was promoted by Republican JD Vance then blared to 67 million viewers by Donald Trump in Springfield they're eating the dogs the people that came in they're eating the cats there have been no verified incidences City officials say it didn't happen even the Republican Governor dismisses it they found no no credible evidence uh of that story uh of Haitians eating Pets the original story came from another town says the mayor a woman who was arrested for animal cruelty the news story regarding a cat being killed and consumed did not originate in Springfield but 36 hours after Trump spoke Springfield City Hall and other facilities had to be shut down after emailed bomb threats no direct link to Trump's comments but conspiracy theories can fuel online hate than be set Ablaze by politicians says this professor if people are not just scared of immigrants you have to give them a reason to be scared and this is why Donald Trump has tried to uh use this term he calls migrant crime and trying to make people scared of immigrants it's all left immigrants in Springfield on edge for myself a little bit worried I'm afraid too and the hatred has infuriated the father of the young boy killed in that accident my son Aiden Clark was not murdered he was accidentally killed by an immigrant from Haiti don't spin this towards hate and Nathan Clark calls politicians using his son to stoke hatred of migrants morally bankrupt Eric senson Global News Toronto