1. United States
2. N.Y.
3. Letter

I am writing to express my deep concern and disappointment regarding the recent anonymous comments made by your Democratic colleagues in an Axios article about the illegal deportation and detention of legal U.S. residents in El Salvador. These remarks, particularly the one referring dismissively to “one hairdresser,” show a shocking level of detachment from the real and escalating fear many Americans are feeling as our nation inches disturbingly toward authoritarianism. The United States government has reportedly sent legal residents — including gay asylum seeker and makeup artist Andry Hernandez Romero — to foreign prisons with no due process. This is not only illegal and unconstitutional, it echoes some of the darkest moments in world history, where marginalized individuals were quietly removed from society and stripped of their rights. To reduce such a serious human rights violation to a “soup du jour” or a political “trap” is not just callous — it is dangerous. If members of Congress cannot recognize that the illegal deportation and disappearance of even one citizen is a line that must never be crossed, then they are unfit to govern in a democracy. These anonymous dismissals suggest a party out of touch with the anxiety, fear, and outrage that ordinary people are feeling in this moment. Let me be clear: it is not “taking the bait” to demand that our government stop disappearing its own people. It is your moral obligation. I urge you to not only condemn these anonymous statements, but to vocally support efforts to bring home Andry Hernandez Romero and others like him. Show your constituents that our laws, our values, and our democracy still matter. History is watching.