A couple of new stories that have been on my mind in the last few days.

Stories That Have Been On My Mind Lately

Hi everyone. This will be a shorter post today—I’m feeling a bit under the weather with a slight cold, but I still wanted to share a few things that have really been on my mind. Hopefully, I’ll be back soon with more when I’m feeling better!

Are We Becoming a Nation Without Compassion?

I’ve been following a lot of recent news stories about immigrants, and some of them are just heartbreaking.

The Child With Stage 4 Cancer

One case that shocked me involved a young child with Stage 4 cancer. This child—an American citizen—was deported alongside their non-citizen parent. The child lost access to the medical care they desperately needed. What kind of country does this to a sick child? It’s beyond inhumane.

Families Torn Apart: A Mother and Her Two-Year-Old

Another case involved a Venezuelan mother who was deported while her two-year-old daughter remained in U.S. custody. Imagine the trauma for that child—too young to understand why her mother was suddenly gone. The long-term emotional damage from such a separation is something that no child should ever have to endure. How can a nation that claims to value family allow this?

Where Are We Headed?

Yes, I understand that many Americans don’t want criminals living here illegally. I can even sympathize with the idea that we need to have some immigration laws. But what about the immigrants who are not criminals? What about families who are just trying to survive? And even worse—what about legal immigrants and even U.S. citizens who are now facing harassment, detention, and deportation?

I’m sorry, but I don’t know how anyone can support this. I try to accept differing opinions—I really do. But this isn’t just about policy. This is cruelty. This is injustice. And it reflects on who we are becoming as a people.

The Bigger Picture

Are we becoming a country that simply throws people out because they are immigrants? Are we becoming a nation that ignores international human rights and basic human dignity?

My late friend Cindy—who passed away in September 2021—often said something that has stayed with me. Whenever we would talk about things like this, she would often say, “One thing about human nature: people either go too much one way or too much another.” I’ve thought about that a lot lately. Right now, it feels like our country is tipping too far in the wrong direction—a direction that forgets compassion, justice, and empathy.

I don’t want to see America go down this path. I want to see more Americans standing up against these injustices. I want us to fight for what’s right—not just for ourselves, but for every human being who deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.

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Another Worrying Development: Defunding NPR and PBS

Another story that really upset both me and Josh is the Trump administration’s move to take away government funding from NPR and PBS.

I didn’t even realize until recently that NPR and PBS received government funding. I had always thought they were mostly funded by listener and viewer donations—which they are—but it turns out they also receive a portion of their budget from the federal government. This funding is especially important for local stations that serve rural and underserved communities.

NPR receives about 1% of its funding directly from the government, though some local NPR stations rely on federal funds for up to 13% of their budgets. PBS stations, on average, get about 15% of their funding from federal sources, but for some stations, it’s as high as 68%.

The Trump administration justified the cuts by claiming that NPR and PBS spread political bias and “radical woke propaganda.” This reasoning is alarming. If we start cutting off media funding because it doesn’t match the preferences of whoever’s in power at the time, how are we any better than the communists in Russia or China? This is exactly what authoritarian regimes do—silencing media that challenges them.

Public Pushback

Thankfully, there has been significant pushback. Public media executives and legal experts are challenging the legality of these funding cuts, and many advocacy groups are speaking out as well. I really hope this pushback succeeds. Independent media is essential to a free society. Without it, we risk losing diverse voices and unbiased information.

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Thank you for reading my blog today. I know this was a shorter post, but I wanted to share these important stories even though I’m not feeling my best. Hopefully, I’ll be back soon with more. Take care, everyone!