Greetings from Cortez! I am asking you to speak up on behalf of the 740,000 people in your district, for whom you are the voice in Washington, about the increasing violence and cruelty that ICE is creating in American cities. I know it is easier to say nothing and remain focused on snowpack and water rights, but the times demand that our elected officials speak out against the rogue agency that is literally terrorizing communities, even in your district.
If you cannot speak out against ICE, please speak out about federal officials deliberately lying about the murder of Renee Good in Minneapolis. Surely it cannot be controversial to call on the president, vice president, and director of the Department of Homeland Security to tell the truth.
President Trump said a deranged leftist “violently, willfully, and viciously ran over an ICE officer.” That is a lie. Vice President Vance said Agent Ross, who fatally shot Good, “nearly had his life ended and suffered internal bleeding.” That is a lie. Director Noem claimed that Agent Ross was admitted to the hospital with internal bleeding. That is a lie. And they all knew they were lying.
If the people who speak for us in Washington cannot call out these lies in public, what hope is there for less well-connected people to talk seriously with their children and grandchildren about what ICE is doing and the lies our senior federal officials are spreading?
740,000 people are depending on you to speak clearly and forcefully against the cruel behavior of ICE and the lies told to protect ICE from the consequences of their behavior. Your voice, our voice, could make the difference. Please step up.
Dave Throgmorton, Ph.D., is a sociologist who spent most of his career as academic dean and vice president at liberal arts and community colleges. Recently retired, he and his wife moved to Cortez from the I-80 corridor in Wyoming.
This article is adapted from a letter sent by the author to Rep. Hurd’s office.
