Father Of Boy Killed In Ohio Bus Crash Rips Vance, Trump For Fanning Hate Against Haitians

WASHINGTON The father of an 11-year-old Ohio boy killed last year in a bus crash involving a Haitian immigrant driver lashed out on Tuesday at Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), for spreading hate at the expense of his son.

He also begged GOP politicians to stop using his sons name as a political tool to fuel racist attacks on Haitian immigrants in his small community.

I wish that my son, Aiden Clark, was killed by a 60-year-old white man, Nathan Clark read aloud from a piece of paper during a Springfield City Commission meeting, next to his wife, who was choking back tears. I bet you never thought anyone would say something so blunt. But if that guy killed my 11-year-old son, the incessant group of hate-spewing people would leave us alone.

Aiden was killed in August 2023 when Hermanio Joseph, a Haitian immigrant, crashed his minivan into the boys school bus. Joseph, who was reportedly driving with a foreign license not valid in Ohio, was convicted of first-degree felony involuntary manslaughter and fourth-degree felony vehicular homicide.

Vance has been using Clarks story to spread outrageous lies about Haitian immigrants. Hes amplified bogus reports that Haitians in Springfield have been abducting peoples pets and eating them and when pressed on his false claims, hes only doubled down .

Trump amplified these lies in Tuesday nights debate. In Springfield, theyre eating the dogs, he claimed. The people that came in, theyre eating the cats. Theyre eating the pets of the people that live there. And this is whats happening in our country. And its a shame.

Trumps and Vances recent smears of Haitian immigrants are part of a broader anti-immigrant message  thats been a centerpiece of their campaign for the White House.

In his Tuesday remarks, Clark condemned the hatred toward Haitian immigrants that politicians have fueled by bringing up his sons death.

They make it seem as though our wonderful Aiden appreciates your hate. That we should follow their hate, he said. Look what youve done to us. We have to get up here and beg them to stop. Using Aiden as a political tool is, to say the least, reprehensible for any political purpose.

He also named the morally bankrupt politicians who have been using Aidens name to fan anti-immigrant hatred: Trump, Vance, Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) and Ohio Senate GOP nominee Bernie Moreno.

They have spoken my sons name and used his death for political gain, said Clark. This needs to stop. Now.

He added that he wanted to clear the air about what happened to Aiden.

My son, Aiden Clark, was not murdered. He was accidentally killed by an immigrant from Haiti, said Clark. Dont spin this toward hate. In order to live like Aiden, you need to accept everyone.

Attendees applauded as he finished his remarks.

Luke Schroeder, a Trump campaign spokesman for Vance, said its not Vance who should be apologizing to the Clark family for using their son to fan hate against Haitian immigrants. Its Harris who should be apologizing to people who testified in a House Republican-led hearing on Tuesday whose children died from fentanyl or who were killed by an undocumented immigrant.

Will she apologize to Tammy Nobles, Alexis Nungaray, or Anne Fundner? Schroeder said in a statement. They hold her and her open borders policies accountable for the deaths of their children. The Clark family is in Senator Vances prayers.

A Harris campaign spokesperson declined comment.

You can watch Nathan Clarks full speech here .