Indiscriminate deportation not the fix for immigration

We’re all seeing the heartbreaking images and hearing appalling stories of children and adults being hijacked by masked, hooded men. Sounds like a horror show, but no, now it’s an increasingly frequent reality for dark-skinned immigrants, even children and long-term workers across American with no criminal records.

There was the 12-year-old boy who begged his mother not to go to her routine ICE checkup. She attempted to reassure him, telling him she needed to do everything right so she would not invalidate her bid for asylum which now can take up to 10 years. She complied with the law, went to her checkup — only to be detained and immediately taken into custody without due process, leaving her son with no idea where she is or if they will be reunited.

Then on June 23, the Chicago Tribune’s front page showed a 6-year-old girl, an American citizen whose mother reported for a routine ICE checkup on June 4, was immediately detained, then transported to a detention center in Kentucky awaiting deportation to Honduras. Her daughter is now alone, wondering if she will ever see her mother again.

Last week we saw images on TV of a long-term 55-year-old immigrant gardener, father of three U.S. Marines when ICE agents roughly kidnapped him.

Trump has said he would only deport criminals, those with deportation orders and those here less than two years. None of these examples point to individuals who fit these categories, yet in a zealous overreach, the present administration is recklessly attempting to meet MAGA extremist Steve Bannon’s demand for deportation of 3,000 immigrants per day — despite the consequences.

This reflects an administration gone mad — and not one Americans can tolerate. It’s time to stop these unconstitutional, inhumane actions.

Joan Davis

Huntley