Indivisible Smith County Condemns Deadly ICE Action in Minnesota and DHS Defense of Agents

TYLER, TX — Indivisible Smith County unequivocally condemns the unprovoked killing of Renee Nicole Good in Minnesota today during an encounter with agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. We further condemn the reflexive defense of those agents by leadership at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which signals a dangerous normalization of lethal force, secrecy, and impunity in immigration enforcement.

Indivisible Smith County calls on the Smith County Sheriff’s Office along with the Commissioners Court to go back to the 287g Jailhouse Model in its partnership with ICE. This accomplishes the stated goal of “going after the criminals” while lifting the weight of constant anxiety that East Texas families endure as indiscriminate traffic stops and sweeping arrests tear parents from children and workers from workplaces, with no credible public safety justification. 

As Indivisible co-President Laura Neal stated earlier today: "We stand with the Hispanic community of East Texas who are living in fear each and every day." She added, "Don’t get so numbed by the daily crumbling of our democracy that you are not outraged by what has happened today. Be outraged."