SPRINGFIELD, Ohio (AP) — The father of an Ohio boy killed last year when a Haitian immigrant hit the school bus is imploring Donald Trump and other politicians to stop invoking his son’s name in the debate about immigration.
Nathan Clark spoke Tuesday at a Springfield City Council hearing — the same day that the former president and Vice President Kamala Harris debated, and the city in Ohio exploded into the national conversation when Trump repeated false claims demonizing Haitian immigrants, saying they eat pets.
“This needs to stop now,” Nathan Clark said. “They can vomit all the hate they want about illegal immigrants, the border crisis and even untrue claims about fluffy pets being ravaged and eaten by community members. However, they are not allowed, nor have they ever been allowed to mention Aiden Clark from Springfield, Ohio. I will listen to them one more time to hear their apologies.”
Eleven-year-old Aiden Clark was killed in August last year when a minivan driven by Hermanio Joseph veered into a school bus carrying Aiden and other students. Aiden died and nearly two dozen others were hurt.
Joseph was convicted in May of involuntary manslaughter and vehicular homicide by a Clark County jury that deliberated for just an hour. He was sentenced later that month to between nine and 13 1/2 years in prison. A motion to stay his sentence pending an appeal was denied in July.
Trump’s campaign and others, including his running mate, JD Vance, have cited Aiden’s death in online posts. On Monday, the Trump campaign posted “REMEMBER: 11-year-old Aiden Clark was killed on his way to school by a Haitian migrant that Kamala Harris let into the country in Springfield, Ohio.” On Tuesday, Vance posted: “Do you know what’s confirmed? That a child was murdered by a Haitian migrant who had no right to be here.”
Clark’s death got wrapped up in a swirl of false rumors on Monday about Haitian immigrants eating pets, then Tuesday, Trump repeated the statements, which local officials and police have said are not supported by evidence.
There was no answer at the Clark house when a reporter knocked on the door Thursday. A message seeking a response to Clark’s statement was left with representatives of Trump and Vance, as well as Republican senate candidate Bernie Moreno, whom Clark also mentioned by name on Tuesday.
Many Haitians have come to the U.S. to flee poverty and violence. They have embraced President Joe Biden’s new and expanded legal pathways to enter, and have shunned illegal crossings, accounting for only 92 border arrests out of more than 56,000 in July, according to the latest data available.
The Biden administration recently announced an estimated 300,000 Haitians could remain in the country at least through February 2026, with eligibility for work authorization, under a law called Temporary Protected Status. The goal is to spare people from being deported to countries in turmoil.
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