To the Editor:
Horns honked in solidarity. A drummer beat out a rhythm. Voices were raised in “We Shall Overcome” and “If I Had a Hammer.” An estimated 500 men, women and children filled the hill next to the GB shrubbery Saturday (June 30), protesting the separation and detention of children and families at the Mexican border. The signs were eloquent:
Separation is Child Abuse
What If It Were Your Child?
Zero Tolerance for Zero Tolerance
Where Are the Children?
Abducting Children Is A Crime
We Are All Immigrants
Outrage over President Trump’s policy of separating immigrant children from their families as a deterrent to migration led to anti-Trump demonstrations in cities large and small around the country and around the world. The sights and sounds of children and parents crying, memories of Japanese internment during World War II, and the imprisonment and murder of Jews during the Holocaust roused people to protest the cruelty of the policy and the heartlessness of the administration. One woman said to me: “I wake up every morning and cry for these families. I don’t know how I would survive.”
Great Barrington has shown its empathy for immigrants in passing the Trust Policy in 2017. This policy states clearly that GB law enforcement and officials will not cooperate with ICE unless they present a criminal warrant signed by a judge. Routine traffic and other stops will not require divulgence of immigration status and documentation. GB is committed to following the letter of the law while showing humanity and judgment.
It’s hard to know if the thousands of demonstrations around the country will have any impact. For those of us committed to “Stand Up and Do Something,” we will continue to make our voices heard and our votes count until this abomination stops.
Joanne Rogovin
Great Barrington
