Grieving Father of Ohio Boy Pleads with Trump to Stop Using Son’s Death for ‘Political Gain

TIME

The father of an Ohio boy killed last year when a Haitian immigrant hit the school bus he was riding in is imploring Donald Trump and others to stop using his son as a talking point in a debate about immigration.

Transcript

00:00I wish that my son Aiden Clark was killed by a 60-year-old white man.

00:08I bet you never thought anyone would ever say something so blunt.

00:13But if that guy killed my 11-year-old son,

00:18the incessant group of hate-spewing people would leave us alone.

00:23The last thing that we need is to have the worst day of our lives violently and constantly shoved

00:27in our faces. Politicians Bernie Moreno, Chip Roy, J.D. Vance, and Donald Trump,

00:34they have spoken my son's name and used his death for political gain.

00:39This needs to stop now. My son Aiden Clark was not murdered. He was accidentally killed by an

00:47immigrant from Haiti. This tragedy is felt all over this community, the state, and even the nation.

00:54But don't spin this towards hate. In order to live like Aiden, you need to accept everyone,

01:03choose to shine, make the difference, lead the way, and be the inspiration.

01:08Then make it seem as though our wonderful Aiden appreciates your hate,

01:12that we should follow their hate. And look what you've done to us.

01:18We have to get up here and beg them to stop.

01:22Using Aiden as a political tool is, to say the least, reprehensible for any political purpose.

01:28They can vomit all the hate they want about illegal immigrants, the border crisis,

01:34and even untrue claims about fluffy pets being ravaged and eaten by community members.

01:41However, they are not allowed, nor have they ever been allowed to mention Aiden Clark from

01:46Springfield, Ohio. I will listen to them one more time to hear their apologies. Did you know that an

01:5311-year-old boy could be passionate about gardening? That he could haggle for a better

01:57price at a yard sale? Did you know that he researched different cultures to better appreciate

02:02and understand people that he interacted with? Did you know that one of the worst feelings

02:08in the world is to not be able to protect your child? Even worse, we can't even protect his

02:13memory when he's gone. Please stop the hate. I said to Aiden that I would try to make a

02:19difference in his honor. This is it. Live like Aiden.

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