Abbott blasted over border rhetoric
After migrant was killed, Democratic leaders say use of ‘invasion’ phrase incites violence
In the wake of the deadly shooting of a migrant in West Texas, U.S. Rep. Al Green responded Tuesday to Gov. Greg Abbott blaming the incident on the Biden administration’s border policies, urging the governor to be “forceful” on the issue of gun violence.
“Governor, when things are done with intentionality, it’s more than a simple tragedy,” Green said. “You’ve got to be forceful, be as forceful as you would be if an undocumented person had taken a life. Given this circumstance, coupled with what happened at Uvalde, Abbott needs to call a special session of the Legislature immediately to address the issue of gun violence.”
The Fort Bend congressman’s comments come days after twin brothers Mike and Mark Sheppard allegedly shot two migrants, killing one, in Hudspeth County. The brothers are in El Paso County Jail on manslaughter charges.
Abbott’s office released a statement last week casting the blame on the Biden administration for reversing many of former President Donald Trump’s immigration policies.
“This shooting was a terrible tragedy, and violence of any kind will not be tolerated in Texas,” said Renae Eze, an Abbott spokesperson. “The Texas Department of Public Safety immediately deployed troopers to lead the manhunt and assist the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, and local law enforcement in bringing these criminals to justice.”
“This is just another example of President ( Joe) Biden’s border patrol policies continue endangering lives,” the statement continued. “It’s time for President Biden to do his job and stop this humanitarian crisis by securing
our Southern border.”
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, a group of 13 Mexican immigrants had been drinking water from a reservoir near a West Texas road when the Sheppard brothers approached in a pickup on Sept. 27. The group hid when they heard the vehicle.
The Sheppard brothers allegedly shouted for the migrants to “come out” in Spanish before firing two rounds at the group and driving away.
A man died from gunshot wounds and a woman was injured in the stomach. She is recovering at a local hospital.
The Sheppard brothers later told police they fired shots because they believed they had spotted a javelina, a black, pig-like animal found in the region.
On Saturday, Green and other Texas Democrats called on Abbott and other prominent Republican leaders to be mindful of their rhetoric and ensure transparency, stating they “did not want a repeat of Uvalde.” The group included Reps. Joaquin Castro, Sylvia Garcia and Lloyd Doggett.
“There was no way for the killers to know who their victims were, their legal status, whether they had been in the U.S. for five days or 50 years,” Castro said Saturday. “Based on the circumstances of this case, it’s hard not to imagine that the victims were attacked in cold blood by two men who looked at the color of their skin and decided to make them targets.”
‘Invasion’ narrative
The state representatives said the shooting was a logical, deadly outcome of white nationalism encouraged by Trump, who they say empowered violent racists to believe they could attack immigrants or people who looked like immigrants with impunity.
“They’re saying they were hunting for animals,” Garcia said. “I’m from South Texas and I know what a javelina looks like and what a human being looks like. … If we go deep down into this, remember who first called immigrants ‘animals’ — it was Donald Trump. It’s just outrageous, dehumanizing and it has got to stop.”
For years, Trump has routinely promoted the idea of a deadly “invasion” at the border that threatens the American way of life, rhetoric now commonly echoed by prominent Republicans.
“The same politicians who are spurring anti-immigrant hysteria are refusing to disavow Trump’s use of very violent incitement that has created a climate that is very conducive to violence,” Doggett said.
Setting the tone
According to Green, the “root cause of the root cause” was the fact that the people of this country view their neighbors to the North as business partners and their neighbors to the South as a source of cheap labor.
Doggett added that now is the time for Abbott to demonstrate a little statesmanship “for the first time” and set a new tone that can protect lives. “This is all about viewing these individuals as subhuman, not deserving the protection and respect and dignity that all human beings should have.”
“This crime is more than just about the Sheppards,” Castro added. “For years, our state’s leaders, faith leaders, Greg Abbott, Dan Patrick, Ken Paxton, and other extreme Republicans have been spewing lies about invasion at the southern border for their own political gain. Their goal was to spread fear and hate. … Today we are asking them to stop their violent invasion rhetoric.”