"Immigrants from Haiti Have Low IQ"...This Time Trump’s Son

Former President Trump Also Faces Controversy Over 'Immigrant Derogatory Remarks'

Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate in the United States, sparked controversy after claiming that Haitian-American immigrants "eat dogs and cats." Now, his son has come under scrutiny. Donald Trump Jr., the eldest son of the candidate, was recently reported to have claimed that "the IQ of Haitian immigrants is lower than that of other countries."

The US daily newspaper The New York Times (NYT) reported on the 14th (local time) that Trump Jr. said on the 12th, "Look at Haiti's demographic composition and average IQ."

Trump Jr. also warned, "If you 'import' immigrants from the Third World, including Haitian immigrants, you will become the Third World too." He added that this was not racism but a statistical fact. However, no concrete evidence related to the actual IQ trends of Haitian immigrants was presented.

Donald Trump Jr. Photo by New York Times

NYT immediately refuted Trump Jr.'s claims, stating that "associating intelligence with race or nationality is pseudoscience." The media analyzed it as "scientific racism that makes false claims about the inferiority or superiority of certain races." It also pointed out that IQ tests "have been criticized for their lack of reliability."

Trump Jr.'s remarks came amid intense criticism of his father, Trump, for derogatory comments about Haitian immigrants. Earlier, during a US presidential candidate TV debate, Trump called for stronger border enforcement and cited the Haitian immigrant community living in Springfield, Ohio, as an example. He also raised a conspiracy theory that Haitian immigrants "catch and eat pets such as dogs and cats."

After his remarks were broadcast, Rob Lu, the mayor of Springfield, immediately refuted them, saying, "This is completely untrue. The city has not received any such reports," and added, "Springfield is still beautiful, and your pets are safe here."

He went on to criticize, saying, "Because of a presidential candidate, false claims about immigrants are spreading, causing 'cultural clashes,'" and "Federal leaders on the national stage are not helping to resolve this."

Springfield, a small city with a population of about 60,000, is known as a residential area where a large number of Haitian immigrants have recently settled. Approximately 15,000 Haitian immigrants have moved there over the past three years, leading to the formation of a large Haitian community within the city.