SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — A fabricated story shared on Facebook about Haitian immigrants eating pets has plunged a small Ohio city into a whirlwind of national attention and exposed the dangers of online misinformation. The woman who initiated the post admits she lacked any factual basis for the claim, now expressing deep regret and fear over the unforeseen repercussions.
Erika Lee, a resident of Springfield, told NBC News about the unexpected escalation of her Facebook post, stating, “It just exploded into something I didn’t mean to happen.” Her post mentioned a missing cat belonging to a neighbor, suggesting the neighbor suspected Haitian residents were responsible.
NewsGuard, a media watchdog organization dedicated to tracking online misinformation, identified Lee as one of the primary sources for the rumor’s social media propagation. Screenshots of her post quickly spread across the internet. Kimberly Newton, the neighbor mentioned in Lee’s post, clarified to NewsGuard that her account was misrepresented. NewsGuard reported that Newton stated she heard the story from a third party and that the cat owner was merely “an acquaintance of a friend,” not her daughter’s friend as initially implied. Newton could not be reached for further comment.
Lee acknowledged that she never anticipated her post would fuel a rumor mill that would capture national attention. She has since removed the original Facebook post.
The false narrative was further amplified by other online content. For instance, a photo of a man holding a dead goose in Columbus, Ohio, was falsely circulated as evidence supporting the Springfield claims. Fact-checking organizations like USA Today debunked this connection. Similarly, a disturbing video depicting a woman killing and attempting to consume a cat was wrongly linked to Springfield. Reuters Fact Check confirmed this video originated in Canton, Ohio, and had no connection to the Haitian community in Springfield.
Despite repeated denials from local police and Springfield city officials confirming the absence of any such incidents, the false claims persisted, spreading nationwide and even reaching the presidential debate stage. Former President Donald Trump and Ohio Senator JD Vance, both prominent political figures, repeated these unsubstantiated allegations.
Lee expressed disbelief that her post became a source of conspiracy theories and hate speech. “I’m not a racist,” she stated, emphasizing her family’s diverse background, including a half-Black daughter and her own identity as mixed race and a member of the LGBTQ community. “Everybody seems to be turning it into that, and that was not my intent.”
The surge of anti-immigrant sentiment in Springfield led to the closure of schools and municipal buildings on Thursday and Friday following bomb threats directed at city officials.
Lee recounted pulling her daughter out of school and expressed concerns for her family’s safety amidst the intense public scrutiny. She also voiced concern for the safety of the Haitian community, stating she did not intend to demonize them.
“I feel for the Haitian community,” Lee said. “If I was in the Haitians’ position, I’d be terrified, too, worried that somebody’s going to come after me because they think I’m hurting something that they love and that, again, that’s not what I was trying to do.”
Immigrant advocacy groups have highlighted the dangerous consequences of such baseless claims. Vanessa Cárdenas, executive director of America’s Voice, a pro-immigration reform nonprofit, stated, “The Haitian-American community in Springfield, OH and around the country is feeling targeted and unsafe because dehumanizing, debunked and racist conspiracies are being advanced at the highest levels of American politics and are still being repeated.” She further explained, “The false claim that Black immigrants are violently attacking American families by stealing and eating their pets is a powerful and old racist trope that puts a target on people’s backs, and it is turbo-charged in the era of MAGA when political violence has become commonplace and we have already witnessed violent incidents incited by such rhetoric.”
Lee acknowledged the genuine challenges Springfield faces due to a rapid population increase, which caught the city unprepared to handle the surge in housing, healthcare, and social service demands. This influx of new residents, many of whom are Haitian immigrants with protected status under federal law, has strained local resources.
Despite these real issues, Lee reiterated her shock at the national news cycle sparked by her Facebook post. “I didn’t think it would ever get past Springfield,” she concluded.
This incident serves as a stark reminder of how quickly misinformation can spread online and the real-world harm it can cause to communities and individuals. It underscores the importance of verifying information before sharing and the need for responsible online communication, especially when dealing with sensitive topics involving race and immigration.
