Robin Smith"Do black lives really matter? Or does it matter only if you are shot by a white person or a white a policeman?" The harsh question was asked by one of several witnesses in U.S. House Hearing Room 2154 last Wednesday before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. The hearing "to review the Department of Homeland Security's policies towards non-citizens unlawfully present in the United States" was captured in a two-hour-plus video of the proceedings.
Jamiel Shaw Sr., who lost his son, Jamiel Shaw II, a football and track star athlete being courted by Stanford and Rutgers, continued, "I see in here black politicians, black athletes, black stars say, 'hands up, don't shoot.' My son was shot in the head by an illegal alien gang banger while he lay on his back with his hands up. He still shot him through his hand into his head and killed him."
Who murdered Jamiel Shaw II as he walked on his own street and was three houses down from his own home?
Here's who: a criminal offender with three gun charges and a felony assault charge after attacking a police officer "with a deadly weapon." This felon, released one day before he shot Shaw, had served only four months of an eight-month sentence for the assault charge and had admitted in court that his Latino gang membership was a factor in targeting the young black student athlete as he walked home.
Oh, yeah, Pedro Espinoza, the 19-year-old gang member, was an illegal Mexican immigrant who had entered America with his illegal immigrant family.
In his remarks, Jamiel Shaw Sr. recalled the phone call he received from his wife and their son's mother, U.S. Army Sgt. Nita Shaw, who "was serving in Iraq, fighting for their freedom," that informed her of their son's death.
According to separate media accounts, silence in the committee hearing continued through Shaw's comments as he concluded, "The duty of the U.S. government is to always put American families first."
The extensive hearing featured other testimony from families who also had lost their family members to violent crimes committed at the hands of illegal immigrants, many of whom had already been criminally charged and not returned to their country of origin.
The hearing also featured statements skewering the Department of Homeland Security, which not only declined the congressional invitation to Secretary Jeh Johnson but also refused to send any surrogate to answer questions.
The last two presidential administrations have failed to prioritize America's sovereignty and public safety through securing our borders, enforcing existing immigration laws and reforming a bureaucratic process that serves to penalize those who seek citizenship through lawful means. Neither George W. Bush nor Barack Obama have addressed this issue within the framework of the U.S. Constitution or existing laws.
In 2013 alone -- one year -- the DHS released 36,007 convicted criminal aliens from detention. The crimes committed by these illegal immigrants included homicide, kidnapping, sexual assault and drug trafficking. Since the release of these criminals in 2013, more than 1,000 have been re-arrested and criminally convicted again.
The justifications for the continued failure to address the immigration issue are flimsy at best and an egregious abdication of the oath of office taken by each U.S. congressman, U.S. senator and president, regardless of political affiliation.
It's time to stop a lawless president and a full department that refuses to enforce the law. Mr. Shaw, the U.S. government and our elected officials do, indeed, have a duty to represent American families first. And, we're watching.
Robin Smith, immediate past chairwoman of the Tennessee Republican Party, is the owner of Rivers Edge Alliance.