Thank you to our Durango City Council for the open meeting on Thursday in the aftermath of the ICE incident earlier this week when they seized a father and two children en route to school. It was a shameful example of Trumpian power seeping into our lives, even here in Southwest Colorado.
Our Durango Police Department, represented by Chief Brice Currant, explained carefully the sequence of events and the DPD response, always with the intention of deescalation, protecting citizens and perhaps most importantly, attempting to look out for the well-being of the children who had been apprehended by ICE. Local authorities have little or no recourse to this rogue military-style invasion and the web of retribution can ensnare local authorities who attempt to protect our citizens. I’m sure it is frustrating to local authorities who would ordinarily intervene in cases such as we saw this week in Durango.
It is vital for us to continue to protest in a manner both forceful and peaceful; we should reacquaint ourselves with the power of peaceful resistance … an effective, long-view process; it is the cornerstone of our democracy. And, above all, this incident reminds us that our most effective active protest is the action of voting.
Linda Barnes
Durango
