ICE’s indiscriminate violence conveys that nonwhite immigrants, lawful or otherwise, have no place in Trump’s America.
 |
| Lorenzo Salgado Araujo. Slain by ICE in Houston, Texas on July 7, 2026. |
Neither victim was the man they were looking for. And each
time their excuses made no sense. But the killings served a purpose:
terrorizing immigrant communities, in pursuit of Trump’s white nationalist
agenda.
On July 7 in Houston, masked ICE agents who did not identify
themselves stopped and shot
to death Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52 year old Mexican national and father
of three. Araujo had lived in the United States for 35 years and had applied to
obtain legal status. He was on his way to work in construction.
Using its by-now familiar excuse, Homeland Security officials claimed that Araujo rammed an ICE vehicle and tried to run down ICE agents by “weaponizing” his van. The claim was disputed by witnesses, is inconsistent with the video evidence, and makes no sense.
Araujo had no criminal record. Why would this
law-abiding, middle-aged family man ram an ICE vehicle and try to kill
ICE agents?
 |
| Johan Sebastian Guerrero |
Again, ICE claimed that Guerrero tried to run down the ICE
agent. Again, no evidence supported the excuse. Twelve hours later Homeland
Security abandoned the “weaponized” vehicle claim and tried another story: The
ICE agent, “fearing
for public safety,” shot Guerrero because he “attempted to flee the scene.”
Under Homeland Security’s account, an unmarked ICE vehicle
driven by an unknown masked man attempts to stop a vehicle, the driver (who was
not their intended target) tries to escape, and the agent fires. They claim,
essentially, that failing to stop (if
that actually even happened) amounts to “fleeing the scene” — and requires
deadly force.
Johan Sebastian Guerrero was working legally at two jobs, as a cleaner and a food delivery driver. He had a wife and a three-year-old daughter. Who can claim he was so dangerous he had to be killed?
Since Trump returned to the White House, ICE agents have
killed at least 10
times, including Renee Good and Alex Pretti, as of this writing.
Brutality and violence are routine
features of ICE operations, yet no ICE agent has been held responsible. In
Trump’s war against immigrants, ICE agents know they may slay with impunity.
The unrestrained brutality of ICE is a reign of terror. Killing
without cause is not a problem for the Department of
Homeland Security; it is a feature. ICE’s indiscriminate violence conveys that
nonwhite immigrants, lawful or otherwise, have no place in Trump’s America.
There is little point in considering DHS’s pretexts for
killing on a case-by-case basis. ICE’s abuse of immigrants is not the result of
individual misdeeds — it is policy. ICE cannot be reformed because its purpose
is not enforcing the law. It is terrorism for a white supremacist vision of
America.
Those who reject Trump’s vision, who insist on the humanity of our neighbors, who still believe we must welcome to America’s shores those yearning to breathe free, must stand up and say No.
Mitchell Zimmerman is an attorney, longtime social activist, and author of the anti-racism thriller Mississippi Reckoning. He's also a longtime contributor to Progressive Charlestown. His writing can also be found on his Substack, Reasoning Together with Mitchell Zimmerman.
Subscriptions to Reasoning Together with Mitchell Zimmerman are free at this time. If you find my writing of value, please like, subscribe and recommend Reasoning Together to your friends. Thank you.
You may also be interested in my road-trip novel / social thriller Mississippi Reckoning. Read an excerpt. Read the Progressive Charlestown review HERE.
