Rogue agency ICE shatters families

Seven women from my church in Olympia recently went to the Detention Center in Tacoma with signs protesting the for-profit operation and the way the inmates are treated. When visiting time came, throngs of family members arrived.

The first person to stop and talk to us was a U.S.-born woman who is married to an Italian man. They were on a business trip to the U.S. and then Canada. When they arrived at the Canadian border and it was noticed that his visa had expired two days earlier, ICE arrested him, handcuffed him like a common criminal, and hauled him down to the Detention Center. He was not an immigrant. He could have been assessed a fine and sent on into Canada, saving us (taxpayers) thousands of dollars.

This kind of activity could result in potential tourists choosing to go elsewhere and foreign business people choosing to meet in safer countries. Our economy could take a big hit if we can’t rein in ICE.

ICE is now deporting parents of children born here and therefore U.S. citizens.

Today’s Olympian (July 24, front page) reports that the PIP program (Parole In Place) protecting undocumented family members of deployed U.S. troops is also threatened by the Trump administration. How can our troops concentrate on their assignments while worrying about their families being hauled to prison or deported? PIP has also been a valuable recruiting tool for our military.

ICE is breaking up families and communities while not helping anyone. Stop this nonsense!

This story was originally published August 9, 2017 at 3:22 PM with the headline "Rogue agency ICE shatters families."