So I think we need to talk about the arrests going on throughout the country. In Chicago, arrests have been happening where ICE detains and “disappears” both US citizens and immigrants — many of whom didn’t commit a crime.

These raids are illegal and unconstitutional. (What’s that about “search and seizure?”) People have even been coming to their homes only to find their electronics missing, as well as valuable items gone for good. 37 arrests happened in one apartment building alone.

Of course, the bigger scandal this year is watching American citizen protesters getting scooped up by ICE. Many of these people end up gone, with their families unable to contact them or find out anything about their whereabouts.

Some of the “criminals” aren’t even criminals or immigrants. At least two tourists have been scooped up by ICE — giving the world a good idea of how “welcome” foreigners are here, even for a visit.

In Iowa, a beloved superintendent was detained by ICE over an alleged gun charge that hasn’t even been proven to be correct. The man in question was known as a star of the local community, with students openly admitting their love for him as both a school staffer and a role model.

It’s a terrifying time. Every single day, I hear more horrors, more reasons to avoid this country, and more reasons to question what it means to be an American. America used to be about freedom of speech and freedom of protest.

Today, protesters are disappearing off the street at the hands of masked men. So that freedom of speech only seems to go one way.

I recently had a client who told me that she was afraid of getting a doctor’s appointment because “Trump doesn’t want us here,” and she was worried it would harm her family. I just wanted to hug her. It was so awful. I didn’t even know what to say.

The woman who said that was far from alone. Many people now live in fear — but not all of the people who should be worried feel that way. I’ve heard several people who are immigrants, not to mention South American, say they’re not worried because “it’s only the bad ones.”

As a person who sees the writing on the wall, I can’t understand how some people aren’t scared. This is doubly true if the people in question are Latino or “FOB” immigrants.

Like, guys, you do understand what is happening, right?

Let’s take a look at the facts:

Overall, it’s clear that ICE can’t possibly know who’s “bad” and “good,” since many of the people they’re scooping up have no prior criminal records. If you read between the lines, it’s clear that “bad” means left-leaning or non-white.

Even if you’re officially “good,” it’s not a guarantee that you’re safe because ICE is literally taking people who they have no clue who they are. All you have to do is be at the wrong place at the wrong time for it to get ugly for you.

How I react when I hear people excuse ICE as “taking only the bad ones” depends on who I hear it from.

When I hear white people say that ICE is only taking the “bad ones,” I assume they watched too much FOX News — and that’s when I give them the benefit of the doubt. I often assume that they’re just white nationalists looking to sanitize the genocide here.

I assume that they’ve heard a lie long enough for it to become the truth. The propaganda is real and many people, especially those who are used to trusting the news, trusted the wrong people. They were radicalized before they even realized what was happening.

When I hear Latin people say that ICE is “only taking the bad ones,” I don’t get that same vibe. I get the feeling that they don’t realize that the people in charge of ICE aren’t differentiating between the “good and the bad” ones. I get the feeling that they overestimate how much their local connections matter to their oppressors.

I’ve spent a lot of time around Latino people, and I’ve noticed that many of them genuinely don’t understand how big of an issue race is in America. They genuinely believe that being “one of the good ones” and being hardworking is enough to protect them from government onslaught.

Even if you’re 2nd gen American, a lot of racists won’t care about your background or citizenship. The brown skin or last name alone is enough to make them hate you — and that’s what we’re seeing right now.

Moreover, I also don’t get the feeling that most Latin immigrants understand that American “whites” don’t see race the same way that South Americans or Central Americans do. Many people who are assume to be “white” in South America are not seen as white in the US.

So they may think they’re white enough to get overlooked by ICE enforcement, but they’re wrong. America has a weird way of random victimization. As anyone who has studied the American Civil Rights Movement can tell you, “If one is unsafe, none of us are safe.”

Much of this has to do with the way that life is run in many parts of South America, often as a result of the drug wars kicked off by America’s own CIA. Silence is a cultural issue because we made it a cultural issue.

In cartel-run areas, this is particularly true. The phrase “plato o plomo” (“pay or lead”) is a good example of this. You can either pay/get paid by the cartels for silence, or you can eat lead. Silence isn’t stupid. It’s staying alive in a world where there’s nowhere to hide.

In America, all of our major political moments were because people stood up to the powers that be. All of that protesting, that lobbying, that work…it was all people shouting for their rights, from the rooftops.

In America, silence is complicity. Here, silence is compliance and accepting oversteps as a way of life. It’s a quiet way of saying that you agree with what’s happening. It sets a precedent.

In other words, it’s not a matter of staying alive.

It’s a matter of killing others because you’re too afraid to stand up for others.

I just wish I could explain it to the Latinos who voted for Trump. This is what they asked for. And no, they aren’t safe. They just signed their own warrants and we tried to warn them.

Bored.