Gaby Pacheco – 'Guilty by Association'

The new McCarthiyites are at it again! This time they are targeting supporters of undocumented students and the DREAM Act.

A Miami-Dade college student, Gaby Pacheco, who is here on student visa from Ecuador, speaks about a 2006 raid of her house by ICE agents, leading to the detention of her family. Reason for the raid? She is a student activist with SWER (Students Working for Equal Rights), FLIC (the Florida Immigrant Coalition), and other organizations, working fervently in favor of the DREAM Act. Read the entire story here.

Now it is not just the activists that should be afraid of ICE raids on their homes. Fash posted several entries on why even American citizens should be worried too about ICE agents raiding their homes. A notable story is that of 17-year old Marie Justeen Mancha, who is an American citizen, and had ICE agents sprawling around her house asking questions:

They began to ask me questions. I started to feel closed in, like I couldn’t say no or not answer them because they were blocking the front door. They were asking me if there was anyone else in the house and if my momma had worked at Crider Poultry and why she had quit. Also, they asked me if my mom was a Mexican and if she had her papers or a green card. I felt so awful and low that they were asking me all these questions because I’m Mexican. At times, I didn’t want to be Mexican because of what we go through and how people look at us different and treat us and assume we’re all illegal. But, just going through all this made me see how strong Mexicans can be and I wouldn’t change that for anything. I’m proud to be Mexican.

Here is her full testimony before the House Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security and International Law

Raiding people's homes due to their political beliefs? Accusing people of being "illegal" simply due to the color of their skin? In America, we are now "guilty by association" — it is definately the new era of McCarthyism. Maybe we need a new name for this bigoted and irrational fear of 'dissidents' and 'difference.'