Washington, DC — In a new op-ed in leading digital outlet the Courier Newsroom, America’s Voice Executive Director Vanessa Cárdenas writes, “A New Vision for Immigration and Our Country.”
“As an American who deeply believes in our nation’s fundamental ethos and aspirations, it is hard to process the realization that the country we love is turning into a dystopian nightmare where paramilitary troops swarm our neighborhoods hunting for people who look like me and killing our fellow citizens. The abject cruelty and disregard for our collective humanity, the rule of law, and our rights, as demonstrated by the murders of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, is atrocious and morally jarring.
Last year, in an opinion piece for COURIER, I took stock of the first months of the Trump administration’s anti-immigration cruelty and chaos and asked a simple question: “Isn’t there a better way?”
Now, after a nightmare year for immigrants in America – and for the very notion of America as a nation of immigrants – my earlier impressions have become even sharper. Think of the sheer un-American sight of troops and masked ICE and CBP agents deployed in our communities as if they were an invading military force. Beyond the recent killings, consider the trauma on children, and the way kids and schools are being forced to bear the heavy burden of mass deportation. The hundreds of U.S. citizens swept up in deportation dragnets, citizens’ spouses detained at green card interviews, and canceled naturalization and citizenship ceremonies for those ready and willing to swear an oath to this country. Add to that mounting evidence that mass deportation is spiking inflation and inflicting economic damage on industries like construction, agriculture, and leisure and hospitality. Or the harm to public safety caused by this administration diverting money and manpower away from child exploitation and gun trafficking investigations and toward mass deportation efforts.
The mass deportation agenda makes all of America poorer, weaker, and less safe. Immigration has become the tip of the spear for this administration’s broader assault on core constitutional pillars. And it’s essential that all of us who have been horrified by this past year work to define – and fight for – an alternative vision in 2026.”
