Jewish tradition teaches that whoever saves a life saves the entire world and conversely, whoever destroys a life destroys a whole world. HIAS is outraged that the callous behavior of the U.S. government has once again resulted in tragedy and death, and that entire communities and the worlds they contain have been upended. On July 7th, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents shot and killed 52-year-old Mexican man Lorenzo Salgado Araujo on the streets of Houston, Texas. Six days later, agents killed Joan Sebastian Guerrero, a 25-year-old Colombian man in Biddeford, Maine. Their lives were different. Their journeys to the U.S. were different. But now they are the latest victims of unchecked, unaccountable immigration enforcement that continues to claim lives in communities across the country.
May both of their memories be a blessing, and may their loved ones find comfort in this moment of unimaginable grief.
The breathtaking tragedy of these killings only becomes more horrifying within the context of the broader reality of ICE’s violence. There have been dramatic upticks in violent apprehensions including in places once considered off limits for enforcement as well as a growing number of deaths in immigration detention facilities. Immigrant communities across the country live in fear of violent apprehensions, whether at the roadside or in less public spaces such as workplaces, schools, churches, and immigration courts.
Congress must now step in to check the power of the Trump administration, which is continuing a brutal campaign of deportation, detention, and fear. HIAS is calling on Congress to stop writing blank checks to ICE and CBP, to exercise their oversight authority, and to keep families and communities safe from this violence.
Throughout our history as a Jewish humanitarian organization, HIAS has repeatedly seen firsthand the consequences of governments exercising unchecked power on vulnerable populations. As long as this administration’s goals remain the detention and deportation of as many people as possible regardless of safety or due process, as long as ICE and CBP agents are free to roam through communities with billions of dollars at their disposal, it is only a matter of time before there are more tragic deaths, and before more families are forced to endure the grief that the Guerrero and Salgado Araujo families are enduring.
In grief, anger, and solidarity, HIAS stands steadfast with immigrant communities across this country and around the world in reaffirming the need for human dignity and safety in all policy decisions. We will continue to fight for a more just and compassionate world.
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