FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA ADVISORY
STATEMENT: CDF-Texas Condemns Violent Language from Governor Abbott Regarding People Crossing the U.S.-Mexico Border
Texas Governor Greg Abbott recently told radio host Dana Loesch, the state is “not shooting people who come across the border because…the Biden Administration would charge [us] with murder.”
Contact:
John Henry, jhenry@childrensdefense.org, Media Relations Manager, 708-646-7679
Austin, TX — Children’s Defense Fund-Texas strongly condemns violent language used by Texas Governor Greg Abbott regarding the state’s actions as it pertains to receiving individuals and families who cross the U.S.-Mexico border.
In a now-viral clip from a January 5th interview with radio host Dana Loesch, Abbott detailed Texas’ efforts to slow immigration to the U.S. across the Rio Grande. During his dialog with Loesch, Governor Abbott said, “The only thing that we’re not doing is we’re not shooting people who come across the border because, of course, the Biden administration would charge us with murder.”
Children’s Defense Fund-Texas State Director Dr. Brandy Taylor Dédé issued the following statement in response to this dangerous rhetoric:
“Governor Abbott’s remarks are alarming and potentially incitive. The implication that the state of Texas would shoot people at the border but for the Biden administration’s legal rebuke is inhumane, reckless, and wrong.
“Further, such rhetoric has the potential to stoke violence in a state that has been greatly impacted by racially motivated attacks, including the 2019 mass shooting at an El Paso Walmart that left 23 people dead and the 2023 mass shooting outside a suburban Dallas mall claiming another innocent eight lives.
“Governor Abbott’s statement is not only extreme but incredibly dangerous. It puts at risk the lives of children and youth, who – through no fault or decision of their own – find themselves in the midst of this crisis.”
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About Children’s Defense Fund
Founded in 1973, Children’s Defense Fund envisions a nation where marginalized children flourish, leaders prioritize their well-being, and communities wield the power to ensure they thrive. The only national, multi-issue advocacy organization working at the intersection of child well-being and racial justice, CDF advances the well-being of America’s most diverse generation, the 74 million children and youth under the age of 18 and 30 million young adults under the age of 25. CDF’s grassroots movements in marginalized communities build power for child-centered public policy, informed by racial equity and the lived experience of children and youth. Its renowned CDF Freedom Schools® program is conducted in nearly 100 cities across 30 states and territories. Learn more at www.childrensdefense.org.