After his false claims about Haitian immigrants eating cats and dogs failed to achieve its intended goal of drumming up excitement about the Trump/Vance ticket, vice presidential candidate JD Vance has pivoted to a different line of attack against the same group of people.
Over the past few days, the 40-year-old Republican has veered away from the whole pet-eating conspiracy theory to instead lean into stigma surrounding HIV. Specifically, he’s been peddling lies about Haitian immigrants spreading the virus around Springfield, Ohio.
But like 99% of the shit he says, the claims are 100% NOT true.
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According to Bruce Vanderhoff, Director of the State Department of Health, there has been no “measurable or discernible increase” in the spread of disease since the Haitian influx into Springfield.
The department’s website also regularly publishes data about numerous infectious diseases in the state and hasn’t seen any noticeable rise in new HIV cases, despite Vance insisting that it’s happening because, according to him, someone “on the ground” told him so.
Meanwhile, Gov. Mike DeWine–who, like Vance, is a Republican–said the reports the VP wannabe appears to be citing are based on debunked misinformation that first started circulating on social media.
And Clark County Health Commissioner Chris Cook called his remarks complete “nonsense,” noting that new reported cases of HIV in Springfield went from five per 100,000 people in 2020 to nine per 100,000 people in 2022, but that number is about on par with the average of seven new reported cases per 100,000 in the rest of Ohio.
In a statement, Equality Springfield’s Executive Committee called Vance’s comments on HIV “dangerous and baseless.”
Equality Springfield unequivocally denounces the dangerous and baseless claims that our Haitian population has led to “skyrocketing” cases of HIV in Springfield. We are steadfast in our commitment to end the stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS and call on all media outlets to promote facts and debunk falsehoods.
In a series of social media post yesterday, GLAAD President and CEO, Sarah Kate Ellis, accused him and other Republicans pushing the valse narrative of “selfish targeting of vulnerable communities.”
“HIV is a serious topic that should always be discussed with care and with the goal of ending the stigma that fuels the epidemic,” she tweeted. “We have come so far in understanding the truth about HIV, and we cannot afford to lose this crucial progress.”
Vance’s latest line of attack against Haitian immigrants is rooted in misinformation that dates back to the very early days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. In 1983, the CDC issued an incorrect statement claiming Haitians, along with “homosexuals, heroin users, [and] hemophiliacs,” were more prone to catching the virus.
As a result, for several years after that, Haitian refugees seeking asylum in the US were subjected to HIV/AIDS screenings, and 200 HIV-positive Haitians refugees were held at Guantanamo Bay. Eventually, the CDC figured out that Haitians don’t actually suffer from a pathological condition that makes them more susceptible to HIV, and so it removed them from the risk group in 1985.
But that didn’t stop Trump from saying that 15,000 Haitian immigrants who had just arrived in the US “all have AIDS” back in 2017. And, sadly, it’s not stopping Vance from continuing to push the lie in 2024.
Earlier this month, GLAAD released its fifth annual State of HIV Stigma Report, which tracks Americans’ knowledge, attitudes, and sentiments about HIV and HIV stigma. The study found:
- A significant reduction in the belief that stigma around HIV still exists over five years, from 89% in 2020 to 85% in 2024.
- Knowledge of HIV remains stable with nearly 90% of Americans reporting they know at least a little about HIV, with half of Americans feeling knowledgeable.
- Gen Z continues to be among the least knowledgeable generations about HIV. Only 37% of Gen Z adults are knowledgeable about HIV, on par with five years ago.
- The following areas have seen declines over the last five years of tracking:
- A significant decrease in the belief that everyone should get tested for HIV, from 77% in 2020 to 67% in 2024. This decline is seen across all regions of the country.
- A significant decrease in the belief that people living with HIV can live long, healthy lives, from 90% in 2020 to 85% in 2024.
Related*
RFK Jr, who blamed AIDS on the “gay lifestyle”, says Trump wants him for major health role
RFK Jr. is known for his anti-vaxx views.
abfab
How very Trump-like of him.
Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson of North Carolina, the Republican nominee for governor of the battleground state, on Thursday vowed to stay in the race as CNN reported that he had once called himself a “black NAZI!” and defended slavery on a pornographic messaging board.
In an 82-second video released before the CNN article had published, Mr. Robinson sought to undercut the report, which unearthed old comments that he had reportedly made on “Nude Africa,” a pornographic site with a message board.
Mr. Robinson, who has a long history of inflammatory remarks and has been a strident opponent of transgender rights, made comments about how he enjoyed watching transgender pornography, according to CNN.
In the forum, Mr. Robinson described himself as a “perv” who liked “tranny on girl porn,” the report said.
abfab
Can we tawk here!
Mr. Robinson invoked Justice Clarence Thomas in his defense.
“Clarence Thomas famously once said he was the victim of a high-tech lynching,” Mr. Robinson said. “Well, it looks like Mark Robinson is, too.”
Wow…the republicans are a mess.
War On Free Speech
A man from Alaska was arrested for planning to kill six SCOTUS Justices.
He donated to Dems 80 times.
Naturally, the DOJ won’t say which six it was. Golly, I wonder which 6 it could be?
More from The Party of Death.
War On Free Speech
Hillary Clinton has a new pro-abortion documentary, with the screenings set to occur ahead of November’s presidential election.
Of course, she does.
More from The Party of Death.
War On Free Speech
New polling shows 28% of Democrats want DJT to be a$$assin@ted.
More from The Party of Death.
abfab
Someone likes to party. A little too much.
abfab
The Trump team has been weighing how to handle Robinson’s refusal to leave the race, with one person close to the former president saying the campaign would likely distance itself.
Some of those close to Trump are still holding out hope that Robinson might quit the race, even if his name has to stay on the ballots in North Carolina. Their reasoning: Anything to get the media to stop writing stories about Mark Robinson, his pornography habits and his seemingly endless controversies that could imperil Trump in a key battleground state.
-Maggie Haberman NYT
CNY1983
some people just as hopeless as the “war on” should figure out the log cabin republicans have 12 membersin total.
just 12.