Springfield, Ohio, residents continue facing threats following pet-eating hoax

Residents in Springfield, Ohio, continue to encounter threats to their community weeks after former President Donald Trump brought up unverified claims that Haitian immigrants were stealing and eating pets during a presidential debate two weeks ago.

City officials have estimated that at least 15,000 Haitian immigrants have moved to the region, which has strained resources.

Denise Williams, president of the Springfield NAACP, said she is among those who have gotten threats.

"We are in a terrible situation here and I don't have to feel frightened. But I have to say, honestly, I'm just a little jittery at times, but that just makes me stronger, Myself and my team, we are here to speak out against threats of all nature that has been brought within our community," she told Scripps News.

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The ongoing threats have put a strain on city resources, Mayor Rob Rue said on Tuesday.

"Definitely this is a costly endeavor in our community with the increased security we've had to experience and even the additional communities that have come around us to help support us along with the state of Ohio," Rue said.

Among the resources from the State of Ohio are members of the Ohio Highway Patrol who are guarding area schools after multiple threats shuttered classrooms in the days following the debate.

Williams said that hate groups have been "emboldened."

"They're not fearful to say what they have to say and that's unfortunate," she said. "This is like a nightmare. The community is uneasy. The Haitian community are afraid. They don't want to come out."

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Jacob Payen of the Haitian Community Alliance said that the community is not upset, but, "We think there's a big, big misunderstanding."

"We try to use that as an opportunity as a community," Payen said. "I would say we have fear we in fear right now. Fear because some of us even want to go to the grocery stores anymore to get groceries. Some of us don't even want to send our kids to because there's been several bomb threats reported throughout the past week."