Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA) speaks during a press conference on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) with members of the House Freedom Caucus July 14, 2023 in Washington, DC
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Louisiana Rep. Clay Higgins on Thursday retracted comments he made about Haitian immigrants in a now-deleted social media post.
“You never intentionally want to hurt anyone, and that message was aimed at the Haitian gangs, you understand?” Higgins, a Republican, told reporters: “The unintended impact that was expressed very sincerely by one of my colleagues and very graciously, touched me as a gentleman.”
NPR reached out to Higgins’ office for comment but did not receive a response.
Higgins has faced backlash in recent days for amplifying false claims that Haitians eat pets and calling them “thugs” in response to an Associated Press report. The news agency reported that the Haitian Bridge Alliance, a nonprofit group supporting Haitians, is seeking to indict former President Donald Trump and his running mate, JD Vance,
“Lol. These Haitians are wild. Eating pets, vudu, baddest country in the western hemisphere, cults, burlesque gangsters…but damn if they don’t all feel sophisticated by now they wear complaint against our president and vice president,” Higgins wrote on his official account on. “All these thugs better get their act together and leave our country before January 20.”
Asked about his comments on CNN later Wednesday, Higgins defended the tweet.
“It’s all true,” Higgins said, according to the press agency. “I can publish another controversial article tomorrow if you like. I mean, we have freedom of speech. I will say what I want.
The Congressional Black Caucus on Wednesday condemned his comments and introduced a resolution to censure Higgins.
“Referring to Haiti as the ‘baddest country in the Western Hemisphere’ and denigrating Haitians with vile and humiliating terms goes against a fundamental principle of our country: America is a nation of immigrants where all are welcome,” the caucus said in a statement. . “Every member of Congress must be clear that we must eliminate hate in all its forms. It is time to turn the page on this tendency to denigrate and vilify immigrants for political purposes.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters at a news conference Wednesday that Higgins was approached by members of Congress about the post and took it down, saying the lawmaker “regretted” it. which he had published.
“Clay Higgins is a dear friend and colleague of mine from Louisiana and a very honest and forthright person. He is also a man of principles. I think – I haven’t even seen it – but he tweeted something today about Haitians. And he was approached by colleagues who said it was offensive,” Johnson told reporters. “I just talked to him about it, he said he went to the back and he prayed about it and he regretted it. And he shot down the message. That’s what you expect from a gentleman. I’m sure he probably regrets some of the language he used. But you know, we’re moving forward. We believe in redemption here.
