Letter from Kathleen Taylor

Taylor: ‘Use Your Power for Good’

Over the past six weeks, the Republican administration has moved 3,000 armed federal employees into Minnesota and supposedly tasked them with removing “the worst of the worst” (violent criminals allegedly beyond the reach of local and state law enforcement).

The eye-popping $170 billion+ funding of DHS that supports Operation Metro Surge has not produced impressive results. Supposedly, somewhere between 3,000 and 10,000 arrests have been made, according to DHS. And according to Fox News and the Cato Institute, 5 percent of those arrested by ICE might be considered violent criminals. So between 150-500 criminals have been arrested since December 1.

Meanwhile, the masked, unidentifiable, unaccountable and poorly trained troops have been (wrongly) told they can break down doors without judicial warrants. They have been allowed to pepper spray restrained protesters. They shove, punch and beat people exercising their First Amendment rights. They dehumanize children and families in the name of law and order. They shot and killed at least two Americans who were legally on the streets, legally bearing witness to the brutal actions of an occupying force. Renee Good and Alex Pretti were standing up for the America most of us would like to believe in when they were shot. The man who shot Good cursed her after he killed her, and then he drove away.

When you shoot parents and nurses and try to call them terrorists, you are on the wrong side of history. Those of us lucky enough to be alive have a responsibility to think about what our country is doing in our name and to stand up for each other. I encourage everyone to join with peacemakers, the protestors, the neighbors saying this should not stand. And I encourage our elected officials to use their power for good.

Kathleen Taylor
Cherry Valley