Read The Room

If we’re going to talk honestly about immigration and where people stand, we have to start with how individuals form — and sometimes cling to — their convictions. I understand that people come to these issues with different experiences, loyalties, and pressures, and that change can feel deeply disorienting. It is hard to shift to a new belief or conviction when you have been loyal and faithful to a movement. It is hard to pay attention when everything feels very overwhelming. And when your ecosystem is narrow and designed to generate anger and fear, it becomes almost impossible to feel anything other than anger or fear.

When people feel overwhelmed or unsure what to believe, they sometimes default to reactions that distance them from the discomfort. Some people simply tune out. Others go further — dropping laugh emojis on articles about children in detention centers or replying “ICE ICE Baby” on posts about immigration. And some fall back on a quick declaration of support for “law enforcement.” But it’s worth asking: are you sure ICE is law enforcement?

If any of this sounds familiar, it may be worth pausing for a moment of honest reflection. Because part of what keeps people stuck is the very human instinct to avoid information that complicates their beliefs or challenges the stories they’ve grown comfortable holding onto.

How sure are you that a marked increase in deaths in detentions is appropriate? Multiple independent reports confirm a sharp rise in fatalities in U.S. immigration detention in 2025, making it the deadliest year in decades. Would you be willing to speak to the families of those who have died and tell them that their death is acceptable?

How sure are you that your tax dollars are being spent to keep you safe, versus making people rich? Are you aware that warehouses are being used across the U.S. to detain immigrants (asylum seekers, people awaiting hearings, people facing deportation) and that dozens more are being procured? The for-profit companies running them are paid per bed, per day. These companies have received billions of dollars in federal contracts and are poised to profit further as detention capacity expands dramatically. The planned capacity is far larger than existing federal prisons. These warehouse‑style detention centers confine people in overcrowded, industrial spaces that were never meant for human habitation, creating conditions that are routinely unsafe, dehumanizing, and harmful. How comfortable are you with your tax dollars being used to warehouse people, with a profit motive to increase the numbers of people and duration?

How sure are you that 5-year-olds (and children of all ages) deserve to be in detention centers? Are you willing to argue that children deserve to be in unsafe and unsanitary conditions, should receive limited medical care, and be subjected to cold temperatures, constant bright lights, and demeaning treatment? (All confirmed in court proceedings.) Would you be willing to deliver one of these children to these prison-like locations yourself?

If you’re still with me, then you’re already demonstrating the willingness to think beyond slogans — so let’s keep going.

How sure are you that most instances of tear gas, pepper agents, impact munitions, and flash‑bang–type grenades are necessary and appropriate to use on American streets against protestors and legal observers — the vast majority of whom are U.S. citizens? Are you willing to argue on behalf of agents indiscriminately throwing tear gas into crowds as families peacefully walk by — families who are there to support their immigrant neighbors?

How sure are you that the stories showing up on your social media feed are representative of how most people feel, or what is real, or true? Are you willing to attach your name to what you see? Do you care if you are spreading lies?

How sure are you that detaining and deporting everyone who is here undocumented is the right thing to do? Does that include Dreamers — adults who were brought here as young children and have grown up essentially “American”? (“They are illegal, and therefore I don’t like them” — an exact quote I read in a professional forum this week.) Have you reflected on what drives someone to travel thousands of miles to leave their home? Have you considered what circumstances might lead someone to overstay a visa?

How sure are you that a civil offense is severe enough to justify imprisonment? Remember that in the United States, immigration law is primarily civil, not criminal. That means most immigration violations are treated the same way we treat things like tax issues, zoning violations, or contract disputes — not crimes. Are you consistent in advocating for the enforcement of all laws, for everyone? Or is the call for punishment reserved only for immigrants — even when the “offense” is civil, not criminal?

How sure are you that there was almost no difference between what Barack Obama did and what Donald Trump is doing with deportations (a common talking point from the right)? Can you confirm that the criminality of those being deported and detained is “the same?” Were the tactics the same? Do you really know enough to be making that argument?

How sure are you that you want to defend practices that ignore our Constitutional Amendments? If the next administration decides to target people on your side of the political spectrum with the same practices, are you going to be quiet then?

How sure are you that the current immigration enforcement will help you rather than harm you? Do you have any need for healthcare? If you remove immigrants from the workforce, elder care, home health, and disability support would collapse in many regions. Immigrants make up over half of home health aides in New York State. Do you have any home repair projects lined up? 30% of the construction workforce are immigrants. How will that impact your costs and timeline? Are you prepared to adjust your life to compensate for immigrants being deported and too afraid to go to work? Because even immigrants with full legal status are being aggressively targeted by ICE and Border Patrol.

Are you sure that everyone being deported is here illegally? What if I were to tell you that Donald Trump has revoked legal status from large groups of immigrants, causing many who were previously legally present to lose their status and become deportable? This is not a matter of people breaking the law; it is a matter of the government removing the legal protections they previously had. Are you comfortable with Donald Trump alone choosing who is here legally?

How sure are you that what JD Vance, Stephen Miller, and others tell you is true? Do you believe that housing prices and costs are going down because immigrants are being deported, as they tell you? How do you reconcile that with the Cato Institute Report showing 30 years of more revenue from taxes from immigrants (including undocumented) than there is in expenses supporting them? Have you seen the economic modeling that shows drops in GDP, lower average wages for most U.S. workers, higher federal deficits, and significant disruptions in industries that rely on immigrant labor? If you voted for Trump for the economy, how do you feel about this impact?

How sure are you that you’re getting a full picture of what’s happening, rather than a version curated to confirm what you already believe? Have you sought out firsthand accounts, full videos, or reporting outside your usual sources — or is it easier to avoid anything that might challenge your viewpoint?

How sure are you that your silence isn’t being viewed as encouragement or agreement with the horror that many people see or report? Are you comfortable with people making that assumption?

I have limited my questions to those that have to do with immigration policies and practices. There are many others I could list related to efforts to interfere in the 2026 elections, January 6th, corruption, the environment, the economy, the Epstein files, public health, and international concerns.

I know that nothing I say here will matter to those committed to hate, those who profit from division, or those who refuse to think beyond the narratives they’ve been handed.

What I am hoping is that those who have not been reflective to this point, those who have put blinders on, those caught in the right-wing media spin, those who don’t like to rock the boat - that they will have read this far and consider how they want to be viewed by their friends, family, and neighbors and how their actions (or inaction) are characterized when these days are reflected in the history books. And whether their own moral standing is consistent with how things are.

Because those of us who have wrestled with these questions are noticing who is willing to engage — and who isn’t — and that shapes how we understand one another. And it is influencing what we think of you, regardless of the strength of the relationship shared to this point. Maybe that doesn’t matter to you. But, it will have an impact.

And for people who won’t engage, won’t vote, or are simply bored by it all, our patience is wearing thin as well. I think of the many quotes going around my algorithm these days, including:

“We all place ourselves in danger to one degree or another when we stand up. But we place our children and grandchildren in even greater danger when we don’t.”

It’s never too late to reconsider where you stand, and there is no shame in changing course when new information or deeper reflection calls for it.

This is a time to read the room. Things are shifting. Where are you going to stand?