Father of 11-year-old Ohio boy urges Trump and Vance not to exploit his son's death for 'political purposes' | Ohio

The father of an 11-year-old boy who died last year when a minivan driven by a Haitian immigrant collided with his school bus has called on Donald Trump and JD Vance to stop using his son's name for “political purposes.”

During a city commission meeting in Springfield, Ohio on Tuesday, Nathan Clark, the father of Aiden Clark, addressed the panel along with his wife, Danielle. At the meeting, Clark said, “I wish my son Aiden Clark had been killed by a 60-year-old white man. I bet you never thought anyone would say something so blunt, but if that guy had killed my 11-year-old son, the incessant group of hateful people would leave us alone,” the Springfield News-Sun reports.

Clark then listed politicians, including Trump and Vance, who he said had misused his son's name for “political purposes.”

“Bernie Moreno [the Ohio Republican senate candidate]Chip Roy [the Texas Republican representative]JD Vance and Donald Trump … have spoken my son's name and used his death for political purposes. This must stop now. They can spread all the hate they want about illegal immigrants, the border crisis, and even false claims about fluffy pets being ravaged and eaten by community members. But they are not allowed to mention Aiden Clark of Springfield, Ohio, and they have never been allowed to,” Clark said.

“I will listen to them again to hear their apologies. Let me be clear: My son, Aiden Clark, was not murdered. He was accidentally killed by an immigrant from Haiti. This tragedy has gripped this community, the state and even the nation. But don't turn this into hate,” he continued.

Clark continued, “Did you know that not being able to protect your child is one of the worst feelings in the world? Worse yet, we cannot preserve his memory when he is gone. Please stop the hate.”

Clark's comments come after the Trump campaign and Vance mentioned the death of Aiden Clark earlier this week amid hateful and baseless rumors about the Haitian immigrant community in Springfield.

In a post on X on Tuesday, Vance alluded to Clark's death by saying that on X, “a child was murdered by a Haitian migrant.” In the same post, Vance also repeated falsehoods about Haitian immigrants eating local pets – a rumor Trump revisited during the debate with Kamala Harris on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the Trump War Room, an X-account used by the Trump campaign team, also mentioned Aiden Clark and accused Harris of not wanting to mention his name.

Aiden Clark died last August when the school bus he was riding in collided with a minivan driven by 36-year-old Hermanio Joseph, a Haitian father of four. More than 20 other students were injured in the collision, and Joseph was found guilty of manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter. In May, Joseph was sentenced to nine to 13.5 years in prison.

In a statement to NBC about Clark's comments, a spokesperson for Vance said people should hold Harris “and her open borders policy responsible for the deaths of their children,” adding, “The Clark family is in Senator Vance's prayers.”

Julius Constantine Motal of the Guardian contributed to the reporting