Dear Editor:

Based upon long-standing Quaker values, members of Midcoast Friends Meeting in Damariscotta condemn in the strongest terms the ongoing campaign of ICE and Border Patrol to deport vulnerable immigrants.

The recent shooting of Johan Sebastian Duran Guerrera in Biddeford deserves our special concern and criticism.

The Trump Administration's mass detention and deportation campaign is unprecedented, cruel, and consistently violates personal rights and the rule of law. More than 30,000 persons are now in ICE jails which frequently operate with appalling conditions for the detainees. At least 42 have died while in ICE custody.

Despite claims of removing the "worst of the worst," 70% have no criminal record and most have full legal claims to be in the U.S. including U.S. citizens. The campaign operates in sustained violation of traditional American values and the pledge to be a place of refuge for "your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free."

Yet another ICE shooting death soon after a similar death in Texas poses a powerful indictment of current ICE operations. There is no evidence yet produced that could justify the summary execution of Johan Gerrera. As we learn more about the officer who shot him, clearly he never should have been given an ICE shield and a gun to use on our public streets.

The massive funding provided for the mass removal campaign should be canceled or at least conditioned by strict standards for arresting only actual violent criminals as well as decent living conditions for those in custody. Anything less will perpetuate a shameful and dangerous policy.

On behalf of Midcoast Friends Meeting (Quakers)

Anne D. Burt

Edgecomb