PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – A recent wave of misinformation has sparked a backlash from South Florida’s Haitian community after Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance spread a false rumor claiming a Haitian neighbor was preparing a stray cat to be eaten.
The baseless story, which originated in a Springfield, Ohio, Facebook group, quickly spread online, sparking widespread condemnation and concern.
The controversy began when a Facebook post claimed that a missing cat was found in a Haitian neighbor’s yard and was allegedly being prepared for consumption.
The post’s sensational claims, without any credible evidence, quickly gained traction on social media, sparking fear and outrage among local residents and beyond.
Theova Milfort, a prominent Haitian activist, was one of the first to address the rumour, denouncing it as “fake news”.
In a statement, Milfort, visibly emotional and draped in the Haitian flag as he spoke to Local 10 News on Tuesday, compared the spread of this misinformation to a “Hiroshima” or “Nagasaki” bomb, highlighting the grave impact these falsehoods have on the Haitian community.
“There is a pattern of these types of attacks,” Milfort said. “Every time, it’s like a bomb is being dropped on us for no reason. This type of disinformation is deeply damaging and unjustified.”
Local authorities in Springfield confirmed there have been no credible reports of pets being stolen or harmed.
