In interviews, some donors characterized the contributions as an effort to repair part of the damage the Trump-Vance campaign — and Mr. Vance himself — caused by spreading bogus rumors that migrants were stealing and eating pets. Haitians living in Springfield and the broader community have faced an array of threats over the debunked claims.

Peter Chen, a member of the Yale Law Class of 2013 along with Mr. Vance and his wife, Usha Vance, organized the campaign in a class discussion group on Tuesday.

Mr. Chen, who grew up near Chicago and is the son of immigrants, said in an interview that he was gratified to see that more than 50 classmates, or about one-quarter of the class, had donated, posting notes of solidarity with Springfield’s Haitian community.

“It was emotionally moving for me, personally, to see all the different messages and to see all the ways that people still reflect those values,” Mr. Chen said Wednesday, citing his classmate’s comments on the donation site, the Springfield Unity Fund, which was established by the United Way.

Most of the comments posted by Mr. Vance's Yale Law School classmates were fairly simple statements of welcome, but some specifically called out Mr. Vance and his wife.

Robert W. Cobbs, a lawyer in Washington, donated $100. Along with his donation, Mr. Cobbs wrote: “In honor of JD Vance and Usha Vance. YLS Class of 2013 stands against scapegoating and demagoguery drawn straight from the playbooks of fascism. With love and a prayer that JD Vance and Usha Chilukuri Vance find the moral strength to reverse the course of their lives.”

The donors also included Sofia Nelson, a public defender in Detroit whose close friendship with Mr. Vance ended after they split over his viewpoints on L.G.B.T.Q. issues.

Donations to the fund from Yale Law School alumni began during the debate and continued on Wednesday, with more than 60 donors identifying themselves as members of Mr. Vance’s class.

Lorie Hale, the director of operations for the United Way of Clark, Champaign and Madison Counties, said in an email that her organization was “blessed” to receive such support from people across the country at a time of “unprecedented attention.”

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5605322&forum_id=2#48156058)

https://www.njpp.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Peter-Chen-YellowBG-Square.png

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5605322&forum_id=2#48156081)

https://www.njpp.org/author/peter-chen/

https://www.cohenmilstein.com/bio/robert-w-cobbs/

From 2007-2010 Rob served as a staffer for Chairman Henry Waxman on the House Oversight Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee, where he worked on energy and climate policy.

https://www.freep.com/story/opinion/columnists/nancy-kaffer/2024/07/30/vance-sofia-nelson-yale-transgender-michigan-election/74594841007/

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5605322&forum_id=2#48156085)