Solidarity with Los Angeles: A Statement from punctum books
The World is my country, all mankind are my brethren, and to do good is my religion.
~ Thomas Paine, “Rights of Man”
California is home to punctum books and we stand in solidarity with the protestors in Los Angeles who are more than rightfully opposing the violence, terror, and illegal actions of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), who have been authorized by our government to behave like a clandestine, unregulated, terroristic operation. We condemn the criminalization of immigrants, the brutal tactics used against demonstrators, the violation of state sovereignty, and the systemic dehumanization of immigrant communities.
It is not the protestors in the streets who are unlawful and disorderly but the ICE agents who foment threat, unsafety, and harm to our country and who have been authorized to act as such to serve the imperialist objectives of a racist, hatred-fueled administration hellbent on ignoring the US Constitution and imposing authoritarian rule while brooking no dissent and threatening those who speak out, in direct violation of our First Amendment rights. The US is crashing headlong into despotic rule and this demands vigilance and fiercely oppositional tactics, especially when the US government is transforming, day by day, into a neo-fascist thugocracy.
The passionate outrage and dissent seen in the streets of downtown Los Angeles, and elsewhere across the country, is a direct response to years and years of the unlawful, immoral, and aggressive detention, deportation, family separation, and tyrannical surveillance of those deemed “illegal.” We affirm the right of all people to resist borders, to be treated with dignity, and to move freely. There are no “illegals.” We are all citizens of the world and we must treat each other with mutual respect, affection, and care, no matter our country of origin.
We echo and affirm the call:
Abolish ICE. Abolish the police. Abolish borders. No one is illegal on stolen land.
Banner Image: People’s City Council https://x.com/PplsCityCouncil/status/1932079933796319435/photo/2