My son wasn't murdered. Stop using Aiden Clark's death to vomit hate about immigrants.
Editor's note: Aiden Clark, 11, was killed Aug. 22, 2023, when the Northwestern Local Schools bus he was riding aboard was struck by a minivan driven by Hermanio Joseph, a Haitian immigrant, and overturned. Joseph was found guilty of aggravated vehicular homicide and involuntary manslaughter in May. He has been used in anti-immigrant political ads and social media posts for Donald Trump's presidential campaign.
Nathan Clark, Aiden's father, spoke at Tuesday's Springfield City Commission meeting after Sen. JD Vance of Ohio and others shared false information about Haitian immigrants stealing and eating cats in that city. His statement has been republished below.
I wish that my son, Aiden Clark, was killed by a 60-year-old white man.
I bet you never thought anyone would ever 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.
The last thing that we need is to have the worst day of our lives violently and constantly shoved in our faces. Even that's not good enough for them. They take it one step further.
They make it seem as though our wonderful Aiden appreciates your hate, that we should follow their hate.And look what you've 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. Speaking of morally bankrupt, politicians Bernie Moreno, Chip Roy, JD Vance and Donald Trump. They have spoken my son's name and used his death for political gain.
This needs to stop now.
There's no 'roasted Fluffy': Haitians aren't eating cats in Springfield. Vance is a liar.
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.
To clear the air, my son, Aiden Clark, was not murdered. He was accidentally killed by an immigrant from Haiti.
This tragedy has felt all over this community, the state and even the nation. But don't spin this towards hate.
Trump lies for a reason: If Trump lies his way to victory he won't be the only one to blame
In order to live like Aiden, you need to accept everyone, choose to shine, make the difference, lead the way and be the inspiration.
While many people in this community and state and nation are doing is the opposite of what you should be doing. Sure, we have our problems here in Springfield and in the U.S., but does Aiden Clark have anything to do with that?
Did you know that an 11-year-old boy could be passionate about gardening, that he could haggle for a better price at a yard sale?
Did you know that he researched different cultures to better appreciate and understand people that he interacted with?
Did you know that one of the worst feelings in the world is to not be able to protect your child? Even worse, we can't even protect his memory when he's gone.
Please stop the hate, I said to Aiden that I would try to make a difference in his honor. This is it.Live like Aiden. Thank you.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Trump is lying about Aiden Clark's death. His dad wants hate to stop