Lachlan Francis chairs the Windham County Democratic Committee. He adds: "I'm proud that in Windham County, Vermonters have made clear that they won't go silently. More than 60 of our neighbors joined the Windham County Democratic Committee in the cold on St. Patrick's Day to host a pro-immigration rally, and we'll continue to take action in support of true American values."
WESTMINSTER-While President Trump claims that his administration is focused on deporting undocumented immigrants with criminal records, ample reporting from across the country proves otherwise.
The people in his administration are trampling the Constitution and undermining the rule of law as they pursue mass deportations, even of legal residents, with no due process. These actions - including using the immense power of federal law enforcement to retaliate against the free speech of legal residents - should concern all Americans, regardless of their immigration status.
Consider three cases in recent weeks.
The Trump administration has detained and begun the process of deporting Mahmoud Khalil, a legal permanent resident and husband of an American citizen. Trump officials have openly and repeatedly bragged that this is due to Khalil's participation in Columbia University protests against Israel's brutality in Gaza. Despite claims in last year's election, this administration clearly has no intent to honor the right to free speech.
Even closer to home, a New Hampshire man, Fabian Schmidt, was detained at Boston Logan airport and, per NBC News' reporting, has been held since early March at a federal prison in Rhode Island.
Schmidt, an electrical engineer, is a German national who came to America in 2007 and is a legal permanent resident of the United States. He has never been convicted of any crime and leaves behind a family that is concerned for his safety and freedom.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has refused to answer questions - from his family or from the media - as to why he has been detained or what will happen to him.
In recent weeks the Trump administration also - in violation of a federal court order - decided to deport hundreds of Latin American migrants to El Salvador, where they're being housed in the country's notoriously violent prisons. There were no court hearings or convictions to prove that those deported were indeed criminals, let alone here illegally.
CBS News has reported that Franco José Caraballo Tiapa, one of those sent to the El Salvadoran prison, entered the United States in 2023 with a pending claim for legal asylum. He has never been accused or convicted of a crime, yet he was detained and deported - according to ICE - because of a tattoo.
Tiapa is not alone. USA Today has reported that dozens of those deported to El Salvador have no criminal history and were detained and deported solely for their nation of origin and the presence of tattoos that ICE claimed - without court hearings or any sort of proof - were evidence of gang ties.
In addition to the detention and deportation of legal migrants, Trump has also shut down refugee resettlement programs, reneging on our global commitment to host those from war-torn countries.
On a call hosted by U.S. Sen. Peter Welch, one refugee resettlement agency described a family that had spent 17 years at various African refugee camps and gone through extensive vetting before being cleared to enter the United States, and they had a home waiting for them in Vermont.
Days before their flight, Elon Musk's DOGE shut down the program that was to fund their resettlement, leaving them stranded yet again.
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These actions are just a harbinger of what is to come as Donald Trump continues his crackdown on immigrants - due process and details be damned.
This policy of cruelty is counter to the values and laws of our nation. The inscription upon the Statue of Liberty - a symbol of our history as a nation of immigrants - reads: "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free."
This administration is hellbent on dishonoring those words, and that legacy that our ancestors gave us.
My own family has benefited tremendously from that legacy. My mom's ancestor, Daniel Hovey, came to America in the 1630s, helping to settle Ipswich, Massachusetts. His descendants would reach the Thetford, Vermont, area by the early 1800s and, today, we reside in dozens of states across the country.
Today's Hoveys are emblematic of the American dream, having left behind religious persecution and economic strife in England centuries ago to achieve heights in fields from the military to law to education in America.
My dad, meanwhile, was an immigrant who came to America from Australia in the 1990s to study at a university in this country. As a child, I remember him navigating the rigamarole of maintaining his green card status before he eventually became a U.S. citizen.
I'm very thankful he's now a citizen, but can only imagine the fear and anguish afflicting immigrant families today as they watch those with permanent legal status be detained and deported for no legitimate reason.
Navigating our broken immigration system was bad enough in "normal" times. It's beyond frightening with a president who has such disregard for the law.
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The negative consequences of this administration's immigration actions extend far beyond immigrant families. This disdain for the law, the courts, and our nation's history threaten every American family, not just those who include immigrants.
If our government ceases to follow its own laws or to honor the decisions of its own courts, who is to stop it from attacking your right to free speech? Who is to stop it from retaliating against you for your views or advocacy?
That's why Americans must continue to stand up and speak out about how Donald Trump's vision for our country is un-American.
While we've never been perfect - especially on this topic - no leader has sought to so aggressively dismantle our laws and insult our values.
This Voices Viewpoint was submitted to The Commons.
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