John Legend Defends Ohio Haitian Community Following Anti-Migrant Lies From GOP

Singer John Legend defended the Haitian community in his hometown of Springfield, Ohio, after Republican politicians spread anti-migrant claims about them.

Former President Donald Trump spread baseless lies about Haitians in Springfield during the presidential debate this week, claiming that they were stealing and eating people’s pets. Both the mayor of Springfield and governor of Ohio dismissed the remarks , with the mayor saying the claim holds no merit .

Legend spoke about living in Springfield and the large influx of Haitian immigrants that came to the city as a result of turmoil in Haiti and more job opportunities that were created during the Biden administration. According to ABC News , the county surrounding Springfield has about 12,000 to 15,000 immigrants living there.

“I think all of us need to have the same kind of grace that we would want our ancestors to have when they moved here with our Haitian brothers and sisters who moved here too,” he said in a video posted on social media, referring to the time it takes for immigrant communities to assimilate and navigate a new country.

“And nobody’s eating cats. Nobody’s eating dogs. We all just want to live and flourish and raise our families in a healthy and safe environment,” he said. “How about we love one another?”

He continued: “I grew up in a Christian tradition. We said to love our neighbor as we love ourselves and treat strangers as though they might be Christ. So how about we adopt that ethos when we talk about immigrants moving to our communities and don’t spread hateful, xenophobic, racist lies about them.”

The Ohio city has been subject to national spotlight following the lies spread by both Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio). The baseless claim originated online after right-wing users conflated a missing cat in the city with video footage of a woman being arrested for allegedly eating a cat.

On Thursday, Springfield’s City Hall and various other buildings in the area received a bomb threat , prompting law enforcement to evacuate the buildings. While it remains unclear whether this was a targeted incident, Mayor Rob Rue told The Washington Post that the threat contained “hateful language” toward Haitians and immigrants.