Dear Editor
In our city, there are clearly wounds that have not yet healed since the murder of George Floyd. One of these is a rebuilding of trust between the public and our Police Department. What we saw on Lake Street is an example of this continued tension, particularly when Chief O’Hara and Mayor Frey try to ask us to not believe our eyes, as well as contradicting the coverage of local journalists, like Taylor Dahlin, who posted photos of ICE on site. They came for our neighbors.
Both seem to be very focused on insisting that this was an operation related to an alleged criminal matter and not immigration. But I, and many other residents, find it hard to trust the intentions of the Federal Government in this current moment. Especially when masked federal agents show up armed to the teeth, names covered, as if entering a warzone, not a city where people live and exist in peace.
Mayor Frey also addresses this in one of his statements: “It’s not surprising that these reports were met with panic and confusion. Donald Trump’s cruel immigration policies have created an environment of understandable fear.” The Mayor, though, seems more than willing to take the Trump Administration at their word as long as they say “criminal” and not “immigration”.
Maybe if he was on the ground and witnessing the events with his own eyes; he would feel a little differently. This type of violent federal activity should have no place in our city.
Best,
Eli Sherman
