Do you feel safer after months of President Donald Trump’s militant immigrant enforcement? I don’t. I see the power of fear as people’s daily lives are disrupted, and a sense of safety destroyed.
I now live in a country where cruelty is accepted, and if I object I am vilified as a domestic terrorist. Exercising my First Amendment right can get me killed, but I don’t plan to be quiet. My voice is the most effective defensive tool against people who prefer a brutal spectacle over compassion.
I live in a county where the sheriff is a MAGA supporter and the Board of Commissioners passed a resolution to track illegal immigrants whether they are suspects or victims. Past rhetoric from some elected representatives perpetuated fear and hate, and ICE now functions at the behest of my congressman. I have dwindling faith that any of these officials would be willing to help my family navigate a difficult situation when they haven’t even offered the trite “thoughts and prayers” for the killings in Minnesota. Would it damage their political careers to disavow the harsh actions of ICE, condemn the violence or urge respect for all people?
No one opposes deporting undocumented immigrants who have committed violent crimes but too often force comes first and facts later. Frequently detainees are non-criminals who are subject to harassment, illegal house invasions and violence. ICE’s mission is defined by law, but their actions exceed anything defined as conservative or liberal. People charged with enforcing the law are now abusing it.
My husband and I carry passports, knowing that we can be stopped because we speak Spanish or have “suspicious” skin colors. If actions were truly about immigration, prejudice would not be converted into policy and U.S. citizens would not be stopped because of color.
This callous immigrant purge, Trump’s felony convictions, and the pardoning of violent Jan 6th insurrectionists are immoral, unethical and abusive actions that destroy the inspiration and model that our country once was to the world. Cruelty and chaos do not make America great.
Evelyn Gallegos
Brighton
