RANKING MEMBER THOMPSON STATEMENT ON THE SHOOTING IN JACKSONVILLE

Press Release

"The tragic shooting in Jacksonville on Saturday targeting Black Americans was not only an act of hate -- it was an act of domestic terrorism, plain and simple. Sadly, it is just the latest example of an individual with malice toward Black Americans being emboldened to inflict violence in furtherance of a distorted and disgusting ideology.

While we await a full investigation, it is time that we address the fact that white nationalist and extremist rhetoric, like the "great replacement theory,' spouted by political leaders on the right -- and normalized by the media and allowed to perpetuate on social media platforms -- was a clear factor in this attack and similarly hateful attacks in Buffalo, El Paso, Pittsburgh, and so on.

We all mourn and pray for the victims and their families, but thoughts and prayers without action are meaningless at this point. Although the Department of Homeland Security has continually and recently warned of the threat of racially and ethnically motivated violent extremism, and the Secretary has repeatedly stated that domestic terrorism is the top terrorism threat we face, we have seen scant action from House Republicans to combat this threat. Committee Democrats will not stand idly by and ignore the reality of the domestic terrorism threat. I hope that our Republican colleagues can emerge from their denialism and join us in examining and working to address violent extremism and domestic terrorism in the coming weeks."

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