Abducted by ICE by Barry Rosenbaum

One of the fundamental elements of an authoritarian’s playbook is to blame minorities, immigrants, and “outsiders” for a country’s problems.  This effort is designed to foment fear and mistrust in the population while dehumanizing “the other.”  It has explicitly been a central element of Trump’s power play since his infamous ride down the golden escalator to announce his run for the presidency in 2015. 

We are now witnessing an extreme manifestation of Trump’s authoritarian takeover.  During the past several weeks, his administration has stepped up immigration raids throughout the country and particularly in the Los Angeles area, where I live.  Their tactics are Gestapo-like, with federal agents in masks, bulletproof vests, weapons, and unmarked vehicles chasing down and kidnapping unsuspecting victims, undocumented or not.  Their marching orders are to detain first through whatever means are necessary and ask questions, maybe, later. 

If you look Latino, all bets are off — the agents will go after you. Documentation status is irrelevant, history in the country is irrelevant, lack of criminal record is irrelevant, family life is irrelevant, adherence to prior INS requirements is irrelevant, as is an active role in the community. These kidnappers do not see the person in front of them — a flesh-and-blood individual just like them. Instead, they superimpose an invented image, one wholly devoid of reality.

We can never forget that the kidnapped are just trying to make a life for themselves and their families. Living day by day, no different than anyone else. Many have gone through incredible ordeals to get to this country. Often, we depend on them far more than they depend on us.  What they most certainly are not are hardened criminals.

We must never forget or ignore the trauma that our government is inflicting.  As reflected by the photos I recently took of posters on telephone and street poles near the sites of Los Angeles abductions, and reported by The Guardian, what is happening right now is inhumane and unconscionable. 

What is also visible on the LA streets is that the community is pushing back and doing its best to take care of its own.

Those abducted often become the “missing,” indistinguishable from the initial states of the purges of Stalin, the Nazification of  Hitler, the terror of the Franco regime, and the disappearances practiced throughout Latin America.  Those abducted may be sent to facilities in Louisiana, an “Alligator Alcatraz” in Florida, or out of the country, to El Salvador or South Sudan.  Once out of the U.S., tracing their whereabouts becomes nearly impossible.

At least five million people participated in the June 14th No King’s Day.  We need to double that on next month’s national day of action. Making Good Trouble is scheduled for July 17th, five years after the passing of Congressman John Lewis, and is a response to the Trump administration’s attacks on our civil and human rights.

Time is not currently our friend. The rush towards authoritarianism has been swift and unwavering. Project 2025 is well on its way to implementation, but we all must persevere and be part of the force that halts this spiraling towards the abyss and moves the arc of justice back towards its upward trajectory.