September 13 , 2024
GALEO Impact Fund
Media Contact: Lorena Mora-Basto
Director of Communications
(Norcross, GA) – During Tuesday’s presidential debate, former president Donald Trump repeated an already-debunked story that members of the immigrant community in Springfield, Ohio had been eating cats and dogs; the following day during an interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Politically Georgia podcast, Latino Republican Georgia State Senator Jason Anavitarte chose to reinforce this ridiculous and racist claim by suggesting that it is a cultural norm for immigrants in Georgia’s own local communities to eat pets. Senator Anavitarte also implied that Latino Republican Georgia Insurance Commissioner John King supposedly shared this belief, and had issued citations in the City of Doraville while King was Police Chief.
The GALEO Impact Fund condemns these fear-mongering statements that serve only to divide us and dehumanize immigrants who are an important part of the cultural and economic fabric of our nation.
“These baseless comments about immigrants are not only reprehensible but dangerous,” says Kyle Gomez-Leineweber, Director of Public Policy and Advocacy at GALEO Impact Fund. “While it is profoundly disappointing to see some of our locally-elected leaders perpetuate this hateful rhetoric, we will continue to work with our partners to celebrate the contributions of Georgia’s immigrant community and address the real issues that working families in our state are facing.”
The GALEO Impact Fund calls on leaders across the political spectrum to reject such xenophobic and racist rhetoric and to stand in solidarity with immigrants who are integral to the growth and diversity of our state and nation. We continue to advocate for policies that foster inclusion and equity for immigrants and Latinos across Georgia
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