Letter to the editor: Staying silent has never created change

Students from W.F. West High School had planned to protest on Feb. 10 in response to the recent deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Good, who were both murdered by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.

Their plans to protest, however, were not well received by the community, which led to the postponement of the protest. Silence in the face of injustice has never proven to produce good outcomes. It is imperative — especially now — that people use their voices to speak out against the human rights abuses being committed by ICE and the Trump administration.

Protesting has been one of society’s most used and effective ways of advocating for change to happen. The United States, in particular, has had a long history of individuals protesting against the government in hopes of holding them accountable and producing change. In the 19th and 20th centuries, American women protested and advocated for their right to vote and were successful in achieving their goal as their efforts eventually led to the ratification of the 19th amendment. In the 1960s, the Civil Rights Movement protested for Congress to put an end to discrimination in employment, education, housing, etc. Their marches played a significant role in putting pressure on Congress to produce effective legislation such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Act of 1965. In the 1970s, many Americans protested against the United States decision to involve themselves in Vietnam. As a result, the United States would pull their armed forces out of Vietnam and suspend the draft in 1973.

Protesting has been utilized by many Americans as a way to advocate for change, and as these examples have shown, protesting can be very effective.

It should not come as a shock to see people protesting against the injustices that are currently happening under the Trump administration. In just one year, the Trump administration has unleashed chaos and unrest within our country over the issue of immigration. Since the start of his second term, Trump has “signed 38 executive orders related to immigration, accounting for nearly 17 percent of the 225 total orders signed so far during his first year, which is more than the 220 executive orders signed during his entire first term.”

Trump has quadrupled the amount of ICE arrests, has taken away temporary protection status from migrants of several different countries, has prevented individuals from being able to seek asylum in the United States, has deployed the military to “control” protests, has targeted international students for expressing their political views, and has made it significantly more difficult for people to have a pathway to U.S. citizenship. As a result of his aggressive approach on immigration, 32 people have died in detention centers and eight people have been killed on the streets by or under the care of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

In response to the Trump administration's actions, people across the country have been protesting to put pressure on the government and have had some positive outcomes as a result. The protests against the detainment of 5-year-old Liam Ramos and his father significantly helped in getting them released. Liam Ramos, along with his father, were detained by ICE in their driveway in Minnesota in late January.

The Assistant Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Tricia McLaughlin has attempted to put the blame on the father of Liam Ramos and has accused him of abandoning Liam and being an “illegal alien.” This, however, could not be farther from the truth. The Ramos family had an open asylum case and were not in the country illegally.

When photos of the 5-year-old Liam were spread across news outlets and social media of him being surrounded by ICE agents, people began to protest outside of the Texas detention facility where Liam and his father were being held. A judge would later order for the release of Liam and his father from the custody of ICE. The amount of attention brought to the Ramos case, whether it was through media or protests, is what gained the support from those in government positions.

The use of protests have been criticized and labeled as “useless” by some, but that simply is not true.

According to Erica Chenweth, a political scientist at Harvard University, “Once around 3.5% of the whole population has begun to participate actively, success appears to be inevitable.” When we succeed in getting more people to join protests, it does have an effect. Indeed, the attention that the widespread protests have caused around the country have helped in gaining more support, especially from those who have previously supported the Trump administration.

Your voice has power. Staying silent has never created change. It is important, now more than ever, that we use our voices to demand justice.

Mia Contreras

Centralia