Threats of ICE involvement live on in St. Lawrence County and probably won’t go away any time soon.

An article in North Country This Week from the Sept. 25-Oct. 1 issue gave me pause because it brought home to me how clearly members of the St. Lawrence County Legislature are not listening to the concerns of us, the citizens they are there to represent.

Many, many people came out to protest Sheriff Richard Engle’s wish to cooperate with ICE and “to more quickly turn people suspected of being in the country illegally over to ICE.”

Over 250 people protested in front of the courthouse and followed inside to state their concerns and dislike of cooperating with such a Gestapo government agency.

Nevertheless, in a rather shock-and-awe response, over our sincerely, democratically expressed concerns, our legislators sided with Sheriff Engle’s plan that very night, almost as if they felt there could be no more time allowed for consideration of what we the people expressed as our worry about the tactics of ICE being embraced here in St. Lawrence County.

Gov. Kathy Hochul has taken measures to protect communities like ours throughout New York from the brunt of an onslaught of masked, gun-wielding, unidentifiable, angry men from patrolling around our homes, schools and businesses. So I asked before and I’ll ask again, why would we ever want the upheaval ICE brings anywhere near our community?

To the great disappointment of those of us who do not share Sheriff Engle’s desire to be in alignment with ICE, we are learning he has joined in a lawsuit with 14 other New York sheriffs in hope of blocking Gov. Hochul’s “Local Cops, Local Crimes Act.”

I protest his thinking on this major issue very strongly!

Certainly the claim about public safety being at risk from immigrants is sold now many, many times throughout the nation. Even though immigrants are far less likely to engage in criminal behavior, Americans are being roiled up by fear and hate for anyone who looks like “other” to our eyes.

Hate rests upon fear and both emotions work together to diminish our compassion for others making it impossible to think of anyone else’s difficulties because every preoccupation and focus has to be pointed toward self.

Being afraid, stingy, resentful and selfish are not positive characteristics that lead to growing a great nation.

I am asking that we all seriously question anyone who is clamoring for us to be fearful of each other, especially DHS ICE when they say their reasons for violent, inhumane treatment of those who seek some safety in this country like our past relatives is to protect us.

We should never forget nearly every one of us comes from a foreign land through the sufferings of our ancestors who arrived on this soil after long harrowing trips over the ocean.

They came in droves, escaping things like the religious wars, tyrannical rulers, famine, the desperation of poverty.

The motivation to migrate is no different today than it has ever been.

People do not leave their homes, uproot their families and face horrific dangers when home is a safe place to stay.

Patricia Lennox
Potsdam