ICE Deploys Tear Gas on Public, Cites 'Defensive Chaos'
When ICE agents shoot a Venezuelan immigrant and then pepper-spray protesters who dare to question the narrative, mainstream media frames it as a clash where protesters 'hurled rocks and fireworks.' The Department of Homeland Security's claim of a 'defensive shot' following a car chase is dutifully reported, as is Mayor Jacob Frey's plea for calm, urging residents not to 'counter Donald Trump’s
chaos with more chaos.' (As if 'chaos' isn't literally firing weapons at people who are already under immense stress.) This rhetoric conveniently erases the decades-long pattern of escalating force against marginalized communities and dissent. ICE, rebranded post-9/11, operates with broad powers, often outside local oversight, acting as an internal border patrol. The 'chaos' Frey refers to isn't
just about rocks; it's the systemic violence inherent in immigration policies that criminalize desperation, exemplified by a federal agency that shoots first and spins it as 'defense.' One might wonder how many 'defensive' shots are required to maintain 'order,' and whose order that truly serves.