A few weeks ago, an unfounded rumor circulated that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was present in Santa Rosa, staying at a local hotel. As an immigrant student from Sonora, México, that rumor was unsettling for me to think about.
As soon as the possibility of ICE being present so close to home came to mind, fear filled my heart. And considering everything they have been doing, even to legal migrants, legal status doesn’t really take away that fear in its entirety.
The subsequent commotion that I felt through the immigrant community here in Sonoma and Santa Rosa was unsurprising. I know many who are undocumented, and I truly feel for them. It’s so unfortunate that the circumstances of their home countries led them to come here the “wrong” way, and this presidential administration is not doing anything to change that.
They deliberately abduct undocumented and legal migrants, sometimes based on whether they have an accent or their race, to the point of possibly deporting Native Americans born in the United States, thus making them American citizens. Completely ridiculous, simply for not being white.
And for many undocumented immigrants going through their legal procedures, truly trying to get back on the right path, they still end up facing deportation right after leaving court. It is truly heartbreaking to see this administration deliberately affecting students across the nation by instilling fear for the possibility of their immigrant parents getting deported and terrorizing their communities by racially profiling many.
And for those who are paying their taxes through an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), they still end up facing deportation because ICE can track their tax records with the IRS (which gives them their home addresses), and stripping away visas from people with legal status, showing it was never about doing it the “right” way or how much you contribute, showing no matter how much you pay your taxes, no matter how much you improve American society by providing food to millions of people through your job that no “true” legal citizen would want to do, you still get treated horribly based on what the law would say is nothing more than just a civil infraction (illegal immigration).
Some people argue that ICE is simply enforcing the law. But enforcement that takes away from people and relies solely on fear, racial profiling, and community-wide intimidation goes beyond the law. It creates harm. When even false reports can cause real damage within a community, it becomes extremely clear that the problem is not the actions taken by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) but the climate that they have created through ICE.
And to fellow immigrant students or children of immigrants who perhaps are feeling scared for your parents or even for yourselves, the Santa Rosa rumor should not be dismissed just because it was untrue. It shows a deeper truth, sometimes obvious and sometimes not: Immigrant communities are living in constant anticipation of loss. Students deserve schools where fear is not part of the curriculum, and families deserve to feel safe without having to verify rumors before even stepping outside.
Thus, to you, my fellow second- or first-generation immigrants: continue fighting, continue embracing the culture that your parents brought to you. Even if you mix it with the American that you were born with or grew to love, embrace both, in fact. But continue to fight for your fellow Latinos or whichever background you come from; fight for those who cannot fight because of their status, race, background, etc. through these uncertain times.
