Jamiel Shaw-Another Victim on the Altar of Political Correctness

Last month, a young man named Jamiel Shaw was gunned down in Los Angeles for no other reason that he was assumed to be a member of a rival street gang. Shaw, an African-American high school student, football star-and not a gang member, was shot down by an (alleged) member of the notorious 18th Street Gang, a Mexican gang that is considered one of the most vicious in Los Angeles. The suspect had been recently released from jail and was apparently, an illegal alien. This, of course, raises the obvious question: Why, if he was an illegal alien, was he not deported upon release from jail? Here is your answer: Los Angeles is a "sanctuary city" that does not turn over illegal aliens-even criminals-to the Immigration authorities. This per the wishes of the mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa, the police chief, William Bratton and the LA City Council.

Who was Jamiel Shaw? He was a young man with a future. He was a football star at his high school and had at least two universities interested in recruiting him, Rutgers and Stanford. His mother was serving in the US Military in Iraq at the time of his death, while his father, Jamil Shaw Sr. was raising him. Throughout Jamieel's short life, father did everything he could to keep his son out of trouble. He enrolled him in every sports program possible. At the time of his death, young Jamil was preparing to take the SATs so that he could academically qualify for whatever college recruited him to play football.

Yet, some scumbag, who was not even in the country legally, just out of jail, approached him and asked him where he was from. Not getting the right answer, the gunman shot him dead thinking he belonged to some rival black gang-which he did not.

So, once again, someone has to die on the streets of LA because the city will not do its duty and cooperate with federal authorities in ridding itself of the criminal element that exists among the illegal alien community. To be sure, not all illegal aliens are criminals, but some are, and we must deal with them. Yet, Los Angeles, like San Francisco, Denver and many other cities, will not act against this plague for reasons of political correctness.

Today, Walter Moore, a former candidate for Mayor of Los Angeles and Jamiel's father appeared before the LA City Council to plead with them to allow the LAPD to sidestep LA's Rule 40, which designates LA as a sanctuary city, when dealing with gang members. As yet, we don't know what the decision will be. Knowing the makeup of the leadership of the city, I don't have high hopes.

This is just another cost of this insane philosophy of political correctness that has infected our society. People actually have to die.