There has been a lot of fear mongering about the caravan of people headed toward the United States. President Donald Trump has whipped people into a frenzy about how dangerous this group is while providing little evidence.
Every day I wake up and think, “today I am going to write about that thing in the news from yesterday.” The thing I am thinking about is one of several that came up, but I decided I would research it the next day and make a well-informed post. Then, I read the news and find another six or seven new things to write about.
From the end of May through June, there was outrage over the forced separationof children from their parents as families entered the United States illegally. Many were seeking asylum. Outrage filled the news cycles. My Facebook feed had posts several times a day from people I know locally as well as national news. I had to stop checking Facebook to get away from it all.
There were protests and calls for the forced separations to stop. Comments such as, “I have a 4-year-old and can’t imagine this happening to me,” helped everyday Americans identify with the plight of people trying to escape from a variety of circumstances many people cannot understand or comprehend.
Then, everything went silent. Although I have continued to read stories about conditions at the detention centers where children are still being held, there has been nary a peep from the local folks who were once so angry about the treatment of children. It was like it didn’t matter. Several stories, however, have made national attention, and people are angry, it just seems like no one I know in western Nebraska cares about it anymore.
Crass jokes and people pushing the envelope has been, and probably always will be, with us. They were written on the walls in Pompeii and the walls of modern public restrooms. We may chuckle or cringe, but how far is too far? And who gets to decide when we have crossed a line.
In the past week, two entertainers have been accused of crossing the line of good taste. One, Kathy Griffin, has been fired from her job and has lost many sponsorship deals. The other, Bill Maher, has apologized for his comments.
Immigrants have been part of my life for as long as I can remember. Every immigrant I have ever known has had a positive effect on my life and shaped who I am today.
Last week, US District Judge James L. Robart ruled against the president’s executive order banning Muslims from Somalia, Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Syria, Libya, and Yemen after a lawsuit was filed against the EO. Robart granted a temporary restraining order.
