You've probably seen the terror ICE is inflicting in cities like Minneapolis. Many Americans are just waking up to what Black people have always experienced. Here's how and why it matters right now.
Slave Patrols: In the 1700s, slave patrols were Carolinas’ version of ICE. Policing as we know it today was originally intended to terrorize our people, prevent uprisings, and capture freedom seekers to return them to their enslavers.
Slave Passes: "Random" checkpoints and demands for identification on the streets aren't so random when you know about slave passes. They were handwritten documents that enslaved people were required to carry whenever they traveled alone. Enslavers scribbled the names, destination, and return dates of enslaved people on slips of paper that patrollers checked along their routes.
Harming Children: ICE is kidnapping innocent children. Traumatizing even young children has never been off limits for them. During the Civil Rights Movement, over 1,000 students skipped school to participate in the Children's Crusade in Birmingham—a peaceful protest against segregation. Hundreds were arrested, blasted by fire hoses, clubbed by police, and mauled by police dogs.
None of this is new, and it goes beyond immigration. What ICE is doing is a testing ground to see how far the state can take mass militarization and incarceration. The parallels are impossible to ignore because the system is working as it was designed. Our ancestors had to be strategic, organized, and united in their resistance. So do we.