'Whiteophobe': Joy Reid faces backlash for accusing conservatives of 'demagoguing' Laken Riley's murder

NEW YORK CITY: Joy Reid of MSNBC criticized Republicans for what she termed as "truly demagoguing" the death of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student in Georgia whose murder has become a focal point in the immigration policy debate.

The suspect, Jose Antonio Ibarra, a 26-year-old migrant, is in custody. According to ICE via CBS News, he unlawfully crossed the southern border in 2022.

Reid addresses immigration policy and crime

During a discussion with Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) on March 12, Reid briefly mentioned Riley's case and the House-approved Laken Riley Act, which garnered backing from all House Republicans and 37 Democrats.

Reid characterized migrant crime as "negligible" and implied that the Laken Riley Act merely reinforces existing laws.

The legislation, co-sponsored and authored by Rep Mike Collins (R-GA), aims to compel ICE to detain migrants involved in theft-related crimes.

Additionally, it grants state Attorneys General the authority to sue the Secretary of Homeland Security "for injunctive relief if immigration actions such as parole, violation of detention requirements, or other policy failures harm that state or its citizens."

“They’ve been truly demagoguing an issue of a Georgia young woman who was killed, a Georgia young nursing student named Laken Riley. They’ve now passed a law called the Laken Riley Act. All Republican members and 37 Democrats voted in the House to support the bill,” she said.

“The legislation requires the detention of any migrant who has been accused of burglary or theft. My understanding is that burglary and theft are already illegal," she added.

Reid then questioned, "What does this law add to the current existing law? Is it just a messaging bill? Does it do anything or change anything? I will note for our audience that overall crime is down this year across this country and migrant crime is negligible."

Reid and Warnock share perspectives on the Laken Riley Act and Bipartisan solutions

While Reid contended that crimes like burglary are already illegal, supporters of the Laken Riley Act have highlighted the fact that the individual accused of Riley's murder had previous encounters with law enforcement.

As reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Ibarra and his brother were cited for shoplifting in October 2023, and a warrant for Ibarra's arrest was issued later when he did not appear in court. According to news reports, Riley was killed on February 22.

Advocates of the Laken Riley Act argue that Ibarra's undocumented status should warrant detention, even for misdemeanor offenses like theft. 

Senator Warnock described the Laken Riley Act as "smoke and mirrors" and urged Republicans to back a bipartisan border bill supported by President Joe Biden. 

“To answer your question succinctly, this is smoke and mirrors by people who are not serious. We had a bipartisan piece of legislation in front of us,” Warnock told Reid.

“It had a lot of provisions, some provisions that some folks on my side didn’t like, but the only way to get comprehensive immigration reform, the only way to address the current crisis on the border in a divided government is on a bipartisan basis," he added. 

Warnick continued, "And so rather than demagoguing this tragic death by this young woman, they ought to get serious. And let’s pass some bipartisan legislation and deal with the crisis at the border."

Backlash erupts against Joy Reid's comments on MNSBC

After Reid's statements aired on MSNBC, a considerable number of viewers expressed negative reactions to her comments.

One X user wrote, "Time to send Joy 'Manface' Reid to Haiti on a one-way trip."

"It’s down cause they won’t even go after them. what a joke," said another user, pointing at Reid's "overall crime is down this year" statement. 

"It’s not negligible when it happens to you or your family," said an angry X user. 

"Woman needs help," another user suggested.

Other comments read, "Such a nasty women [sic]," and that "'Joy' is a hate-filled racist."

"Joy is such a whiteophobe," said another X user. 

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