Too Soon? Venezuelans Fear Backlash after Laken Riley’s Murder

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution found an illegal Venezuela alien who complained that “inflammatory rhetoric” may reverse “gains’ illegal aliens have made in the local economy in Atlanta. 

Is it too soon to be reading these stories meant to pull at your heartstrings for illegal aliens instead of keeping the focus on a college coed murdered by an illegal alien? You’re damn right it is. This is nauseating. 

Klinsman Torres is an illegal alien from Venezuela. He illegally crossed the southern border in August 2022. It was just weeks before Jose Antonio Ibarra did the same, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). He currently lives and works in Atlanta. Ibarra murdered Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student last week as she jogged on a popular trail on campus in broad daylight.

Torres groused that the spotlight that Laken Riley’s murder in Athens has placed a spotlight on border security. He said he has spoken with other illegal aliens from Venezuela living in Georgia. They are worried that inflammatory rhetoric about illegal immigrants and immigration might erase what is described as the gains the illegals have made as low-income workers in the local economy.

“There’s a lot of uncertainty about what’s going to happen in the short term,” Torres said. But “I don’t think this is going to end well for us.”

The latest Gallup polling shows that immigration is the top issue for voters this cycle. News flash to the self-centered Torres, the issue of border security and illegal immigration was already in the public’s discourse. Do I care if he is uncomfortable with things he hears from grieving Georgians? No. The same goes for Americans voicing their frustration and anger over the Biden border crisis. They are entitled to express themselves. I don’t advocate for any violence that may come from hot tempers but how dare Torres play the victim. 

It has only been a week since Laken’s murder was reported. Students on the UGA campus altered the sign at Lake Herrick to read “Laken” Herrick as a way of memorializing her. The trail she was murdered on is nearby.

Where is the alleged inflammatory rhetoric? Political leaders are being very measured in their comments, as far as I’ve seen. 

Riley’s death at the alleged hands of Ibarra has ratcheted up the tension. On social media, former President Donald J. Trump called the Venezuelan national a “monster,” putting the blame on the Biden administration for a migrant “invasion” that is “killing our citizens.” Fresh from sending more Georgia National Guard troops to the southern border, Gov. Brian Kemp also linked the bloodshed at UGA to federal immigration policy, calling the murder “inexcusable and avoidable.”

In a statement, the head of the Georgia Republican Party, former state Sen. Josh McKoon, called out “illegal alien violence” and blamed Biden for allowing “a Venezuelan illegal alien to come here and commit this crime.”

What isn’t true and accurate about those statements? They look truthful and timely. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution noted that “On average, unauthorized immigrants are half as likely to be arrested for violent crimes as U.S.-born citizens.”  What was the point of that? Was it to confirm the unfairness that this brutal and senseless crime spotlights problems with illegal aliens in communities? Does Torres expect American residents to just shut up and accept that this happens? It’s absurd. 

Whataboutism doesn’t work here.

Instead of complaining that the attention to Laken’s story isn’t “fair” to other illegal aliens who came – wait for it –  “with dreams of growth, of improving their lives” – Torres should sit this one out. 

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution wrote about his journey to cross the southern border via the Darian Gap. Like clockwork, a non-profit came to his rescue upon arriving in Georgia. The article notes that, unlike illegal aliens who end up in a city like New York City, there were no local or state funds to help them. It’s like Georgia doesn’t reward illegal immigration or something. 

Have no fear – more illegal aliens have been incentivized by hand-outs now, thanks to Joe Biden’s declaration of special status to Venezuelans. Last September Biden made Venezuelan nationals on U.S. territory eligible for temporary humanitarian status. This protects them from deportation and allows them to get work permits and driver’s licenses. 

This article reminded me of what the press did after the terrorist attacks on 9/11/01. The articles about a rise in Islamaphobia began so as not to support accurately describing the terrorist who murdered thousands of people that day. The Associated Press tried to change the focus on illegal immigration to a focus on general safety concerns of women jogging alone. This is Biden’s America and his dereliction of duty along the southern border must not be mentioned, according to the press. They have covered for him the last three years and now the catastrophe at the border is so bad that they can no longer do that. 

This article is a slap in the face to Laken’s family and friends and all other victims of criminal illegal alien acts.