Aiden died on his first day of school in August 2023 when a minivan driven by a Haitian immigrant struck the bus he was traveling in. The driver, Hermanio Joseph, was convicted of manslaughter and vehicular homicide and sentenced to nine to 13 years in prison.
The incident, which injured more than 20 students, has stoked anger over Springfield’s recent influx of Haitian immigrants, which has become a national political issue in recent days and has even sparked unfounded rumors spreading on social media about immigrants harming other people’s pets.
The Trump campaign spread false claims about Haitian migrants on Monday and Tuesday, using the rumors to attack Harris’ record on immigration, but NBC News has not seen any statements mentioning the Clark family. Trump on Tuesday posted a supposedly artificial intelligence-generated image to Truth Social that showed him with cats and other animals, alluding to the false rumors.
The Clarks have repeatedly urged people not to link their son’s death to immigration or use it to incite hatred against Haitians.
Clark, whose wife, Danielle, was present during Tuesday’s meeting, said it was not true that his son was “murdered,” as Vance had said.
“My son Aiden Clark was not murdered. He was accidentally killed by a Haitian immigrant. This tragedy is being felt throughout our region, state and country, but please don’t let it be wasted on hate. To live like Aiden, we need to embrace all people,” he said.
Clark said he was “morally bankrupt” for mentioning his son and named four politicians – Trump, Vance, Republican Senate candidate Bernie Moreno of Ohio and Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas.
“They mentioned my son’s name and used his death for political gain,” he said.
“They can spew all the hate they want about illegal immigration, the border crisis and even false claims about fluffy pets being ravaged and eaten by local residents, but they are not allowed to mention Aiden Clark of Springfield, Ohio, and never have been allowed to,” he said.
The same day, Trump campaign spokeswoman Carolyn Leavitt said the complaints of longtime Springfield residents about immigration should be taken seriously.
“This is not something we made up. This is something that the people of Ohio informed us about,” Leavitt said in an interview on NBC News’ “Meet the Press Now,” adding that residents “have a right to have a say.”
Nathan Clark did not respond to a request for additional comment.
Moreno posted on social media this week that Haitian immigrants are “taking advantage of social services” and repeated unsubstantiated claims about household pets. Roy also criticized Haitian immigrants at the X in Springfield.
Representatives for Moreno and Roy did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Clark said hatred towards Haitians has grown to the point that he hopes that if his son “was killed by a 60-year-old white man,” the haters would leave us alone.
“To be violently and constantly thrust into the worst day of our lives is the worst thing we can do,” he said.
