Singer-songwriter John Legend took to his Instagram account Thursday following Tuesday's presidential debate to denounce and debunk former President Trump's claims that Haitian migrants were eating cats and dogs in Legend's hometown city of Springfield, Ohio. 

While Springfield has seen a significant increase in the number of Haitian migrants arriving in the city, Legend dismissed the viral claims of pet-snatching and -eating. 

"Nobody’s eating cats. Nobody’s eating dogs," he said in a lengthy video while donning a white robe from his Beverly Hills mansion more than 2,200 miles away from Springfield. "The bottom line is these people came to Springfield because there were jobs for them, and they were willing to work."

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Captioning his post "How about we love one another. See each other’s humanity…. Let’s talk about Springfield, Ohio," the Grammy- and Oscar-winning entertainer said he was born "John R. Stephens" and raised in Springfield. He urged residents to show "grace" to the roughly 15,000 immigrants who have arrived there.

"They wanted to live the American dream, just like your German ancestors, your Irish ancestors, your Italian ancestors, your Jewish ancestors. Your Jamaican ancestors, your Polish ancestors - all these ancestors who moved to this country," Legend continued in his video. 

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Thousands of Haitians have arrived in Springfield since the COVID-19 pandemic, and residents have been pointing to an uptick in crime, mayhem and car crashes due to the massive influx of new residents. In a town of 58,000 people, roughly 20,000 Haitians have arrived, according to city officials. 

Residents have pushed back on the influx, sharing outrage at the ongoing surge during recent city council meetings to demand action on the issue. 

Legend fired back pointing out the challenges these immigrants are facing while they are just seeking "opportunity for themselves and their families in the American dream."

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Online backlash to Legend's post was swift, however, with many pointing out his hypocrisy as he no longer lives in Ohio. 

"You house them in your private palace then," one person commented.

"Telling us how it is while wearing a bath robe in your mansion is pretty wild. If it's so great, move the family back to Springfield," another person wrote.

"Do you still live in Springfield? I didn't know that. How many migrants are you inviting into your neighborhood?" another person commented on the post.

"So when are you opening your house to illegal immigrants???!!!! I’ll wait," another user wrote. 

Charlie Kirk, founder and CEO of Turning Point USA and host of "The Charlie Kirk Show," also chimed in on X, expressing concern over Legend's post and disconnect with Americans. 

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"John Legend took to social media to lecture the residents of his home town Springfield to be more accommodating to the 20,000 Haitians who just swamped the town," Kirk wrote.

"Of course, John Legend doesn’t live in Springfield. Like most smug liberals, he would never in a million years live out the consequences of his ideology. Instead, he sits safely inside an $18 million Beverly Hills mansion, while belittling the pain, fear, and loss suffered by the working class people he left far behind him," Kirk said. 

In response to a query from Fox News Digital, local officials pushed back against the claims surfacing online.

"In response to recent rumors alleging criminal activity by the immigrant population in our city, we wish to clarify that there have been no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community," the city said.

Fox News Digital's Adam Shaw and Bailee Hill contributed to this report.

Georgia's Apalachee High School continues to grapple with tragedy. But, the school's football team received a special surprise on Friday which many hope will help lift the spirits of the student athletes.

The Atlanta Falcons hosted the football players one week after a shooting left two students and two teachers dead. The high school athletes had the opportunity to get an up-close look at the Falcons at the team's training complex. 

The Falcons were continuing their preparations for Monday's game against the Philadelphia Eagles. The Falcons practice facility is located in Flowery Branch, Georgia, which is approximately 20 miles from the Apalachee High School campus.

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"I think it's incredible that you get a chance to see some young kids going through some tough stuff," Falcons assistant head coach Jerry Gray said. "I always look and say, 'Man, what are they going through?' They've got to go back to the school where it happened."

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Among the victims of the Sept. 4 shooting rampage was a teacher who served as an assistant coach for the Apalachee football team. 

Nine others were injured. Funerals for two of the victims took place on Saturday. A 14-year-old student has been charged with murder, and his father also faces charges for allegedly furnishing his son with a weapon.

During the shooting, some students scrambled for shelter in the high school's football stadium.

"When you get a little relief and you get a chance to kind of love on them a little bit, I think that's special for our guys," Gray said. "We're NFL guys, but we still understand what caring means."

Before their season-opening loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Falcons coaches and players wore Apalachee T-shirts during pregame warmups. A moment of silence was held before kickoff.

Falcons running back Bijan Robinson said the recent tragic events left him heartbroken, and he is keeping the entire community in his prayers. 

"I have brothers and sisters, and I have younger siblings… who want to go to school safely. Having that incident happen and having such a tragedy happen like that, it really broke my heart," Robinson told WSB-TV. 

"I even talked to one of the kids (who goes) to that school and just seeing her being in such a vulnerable space and just crying and still trying to have a smile… it really sucked. I just pray for those kids every single day. The kids, the faculty, everybody there."

Two-time Pro Bowler Grady Jarrett was born in Georgia and was raised in suburban Atlanta.

"It definitely meant a lot," the Falcons defensive lineman said. "I played Apalachee when I was in high school."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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