Right-wing media personalities and influencers have flocked to Springfield, Ohio, looking for anything that might help them prove the credibility of a viral racist rumor about Haitian migrants in the community — relying on misleading, sometimes AI-generated content to support their point. Springfield, whose Haitian population has grown by an estimated 15,000 people, has become something of a synonym for conservatives' fears about immigration and demographic change.
One of the most recent examples comes from Tyler Oliveira, a YouTuber and MrBeast contributor, who posted a misleading video about Springfield on Wednesday. Oliveira's video intersperses interviews with locals — including some Haitians — with AI-generated images and memes. Just five seconds in, the video shows a clearly AI-generated clip of a black man driving a white van surrounded by cats. The video also includes clips that have nothing to do with Springfield at all, including footage of a woman being arrested in Canton, Ohio, for eating a cat, and a clip of gang members marching on a street in Haiti. It's a textbook example of disinformation.
Republicans have largely adopted the anti-Haitian propaganda since it first spread online — and encouraged others to spread it. Former President Donald Trump mentioned it during this week's presidential debate in response to a question about border policy. Vice presidential candidate JD Vance urged his followers to “make memes” even if the rumor turns out to be false. And conservative provocateur Christopher Rufo offered a “$5,000 bounty” to anyone who could “produce hard, verifiable evidence that Haitian migrants in Springfield are eating cats.”
The rumor had a noticeable impact on Springfield, especially on the growing Haitian community. The Haitian Period reports that some families are not sending their children to school for fear of violent attacks. A Haitian woman who has lived in Springfield for six years told the Just that her car was recently damaged. And the Springfield News-Sun reports that several government buildings in the city were closed Thursday after a bomb threat was made against “multiple facilities throughout Springfield.” Springfield City Hall was evacuated, as was a local elementary school.
False claims about people eating cats are not the only misinformation coming out of Springfield. Oliveira's video suggests that migrants in Springfield are claiming welfare benefits that would otherwise go to Americans, while politicians, including Vance, have claimed that Haitians recently crossed the border. But the Dayton Daily News reports that most Haitians in Springfield in the United States live under Temporary Protected Status (TPS), an immigration designation that allows nationals of certain countries to live and work in the United States but does not provide a path to citizenship. TPS is only available to people already in the United States; people can't apply for it after they cross the border. Haiti was first designated for TPS in 2010, and President Joe Biden renewed its TPS status in 2021, meaning no one entering after that will qualify. And people with TPS aren't eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or most other forms of public assistance.
The most obvious misinformation coming out of Springfield—the racist rumor that immigrants eat pets—obscures the smaller, more insidious lies being spread about the community.