SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – Sioux Falls Mayor Paul TenHaken is standing behind his social media post defending Haitians amidst former President Donald Trump’s allegations at last week’s presidential debate.
During the debate on September 10, Trump amplified false rumors that Haitian immigrants in Ohio were abducting and eating pets. There is no evidence that Haitian immigrants in an Ohio community are doing that, officials say
That’s when Mayor TenHaken made a post on Facebook, voicing his support for the Haitian community.
TenHaken said it was his morals that made him condemn the statements made by a fellow Republican.
“At the end of the day, we’re all human beings. Is immigration a huge challenge right now? Absolutely. I’d almost say it’s a mess, but by spreading lies in vitriol and saying a certain ethnicity is eating dogs in a community, it’s just not conducive to the dialogue. I think we can have constructive policy discussions without attacking people and their ethnicity and their background. When I see that happening, I just sometimes feel the desire to insert myself and say, ‘Hey, this isn’t right,” and that’s what I did and I stand behind that all day long,” said TenHaken.
The Haitians are a people TenHaken says he knows well, and he stands by what he wrote.
“I’ve been to Haiti a lot of times, probably 10 times, so I know the Haitian people well. Anytime I can stand up for the core humanity of who people are at their core, I’m going to do that and use my platform to do that. Is it a policy discussion? No. To me, it’s just a moral discussion. So, I was proud to put that out there.”
Copyright 2024 Dakota News Now. All rights reserved.
