Some have responded w/ a version of "why are you elevating this story when non-citizens have it much worse?" This story shows, in a concrete & visceral way, that citizenship is not a shield from state lawlessness in a mass deportation regime. That realization can turn ppl against such policies.
Agree. It’s not about mimimizing the harm to our immigrant neighbors but to make it crystal clear that every one in our nation is at risk while this lawless administration attacks our Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Rule of Law.
I completely get it - it's a call to action. A lot of people are inherently self-centered - they won't care it's happening to non-citizens. They might start to care that it is happening to citizens. They will definitely care when it happens to them.
People ought to care when it's happening to non-citizens and people ought to care non-citizens have it worse. Not everyone is ready for that level of enlightenment. We have to meet people where they are at to get them to fight to move the goalposts so we can then work to help non-citizens, too.
If you think I'm ignoring immigrants and other non-citizens, just check my timeline.
bsky.app/profile/did:...
there is xenophobia in Oklahoma? But there are so many good Christians.
Evil is never satisfied with one bite. If they get away with this once, they will look for reasons to do it again *because they like the power trip*
Once we knew they came for one person, we realized any one of us could be next. This story out of Oklahoma demonstrates just that.
Exactly right: people must understand that the road we’re on leads directly to the worst petty despots in every community appearing at our doorsteps in the middle of the night to announce, “I am the law.”
These fascists are nothing more than gestapos. No id’s. No warrants. Totally just street thugs.
This wouldn't have been right if they hadn't been citizens either.
More importantly, it's helpful to use "this could happen to you" to get a wider group of people on board with reining in authoritarianism.
Exactly. It is an unfortunate truth that many times we respond only when it affects us. So this helps people see that.
Rachel Maddow has it now. I hope she can feature this on one of her last regular broadcasts. Anyone who still thinks this can't happen to them needs to see this story.
There they go with the civil assets forfeitures - those people will have to prove everything that was taken from them ISN'T from illegal sources - and how do you prove a negative, unless you have all your pay stubs and receipts in order and can match it with money leaving your bank account?
Exactly, I've had so many people talk about "well move to a blue state/work on your status/etc etc etc" and like... that would work if following laws was what this is about but it's not. it's about terror and power.
The police had a judicially -approved search warrant. This is how police departments execute search warrants all over the country every day. I'm not defending it, but the criminal justice apparatus is not unique to the deportation crisis nor to this moment in time.
All the more reason to get more people on board.
To your point, today NYT published excerpts of a conversation w/ Trump voters in which a point of disagreement b/w a regretful voter and an unregretful one is whether ICE has done anything to bona fide citizens or not.
It's also key to note and document the abuses ICE is taking to enact this policy.
Those responses are exactly what Niemöller was speaking of when he wrote, "First they came for . . . " You are absolutely correct here . . . speaking as a transgender woman I viscerally understand this as 🍊💩 and his people have been already targeting people such as myself along with the Immigrants