Immigrants are the story of Missouri and America. Don’t demonize them | Opinion

My grandfather, Joseph Aloysius Bodey, immigrated to Missouri in 1886 with his parents. There, he met Margaret, a daughter of immigrants, married her and raised four children with her.

One was my father, Carl, born in Pierce City in 1916. Over the last 250 years, this is the story of America. With hard work and determination, immigrants like them have made our nation better.

We are now a diverse and free country, with most of us their descendants. But today immigrants are demonized and mistreated by politicians and other Americans. Regardless of where they are from, they are still human beings deserving of respect from all of us, including from our government.

Immigrants have families, work all kinds of jobs and pay taxes. Most have lived here for many years and have no criminal record. Once here, many start the multiyear process of applying for eventual citizenship. These people are our friends or neighbors.

Yet far too often these days, we are seeing instances of cruelty. Innocent immigrants are accosted and arrested at their homes, places of work, schools and on the streets, often only because of the language they speak or the color of their skin.

When Immigration and Customs Enforcement forces attempt to stop and detain an immigrant, they frequently do so aggressively and with numerous agents. They wear masks and military-like uniforms, provide no identification and carry guns, rifles and other riot-type equipment. These weapons are sometimes pointed at the victims as if they were in a war zone.

Often, judicial warrants are not obtained nor is any due process given as homes are broken into, car windows are smashed, victims are grabbed and tackled to the ground, and carried away to detention centers — and sometimes deported, while their families wonder where they are.

During some apprehensions, immigrants are injured. Innocent witnesses protesting peacefully and legally waving signs, speaking out, blowing warning whistles and taking videos, are assaulted, detained and shot. Two American citizens in Minneapolis — Renee Good and Alex Pretti — have already been killed by federal agents. The actions and words of some ICE agents are thuggish and bullying, if not illegal.

Once these confrontations are reported, officials from the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection and even our president quickly make misleading prejudgments, defending the involved agents and blaming the victims with false narratives. The immigrants and others involved are immediately referred to as “domestic terrorists” without any evidence. In addition, these federal agencies allow themselves to be the investigators, excluding any investigations by unbiased authorities.

The family separation policy of the president’s first term is back, as children are again being separated from their parents or incarcerated with one or both parents in detention centers. A prison in Dilley, Texas, for example, allegedly houses about 100 children, until recently including 5-year-old Liam Ramos and his father.

When any immigrant commits a crime, some media outlets and politicians put the blame on all immigrants. The truth is that the crime rate for immigrants is far lower than that for U.S. citizens.

The president has promised to deport millions of “criminal” immigrants. He falsely claims they came from rogue countries and are “ex-prisoners,” “murderers,” “rapists,” “animals” and “garbage,” concluding that they’re “poisoning the blood of our country.” Under this guise, he is now trying to apprehend and deport every immigrant he can, including those who have lived and worked here for many years, and especially those of color.

Most Americans realize immigrants — regardless of their original country, culture, color or religion — are people who want to participate in and contribute to our democracy, just like our grandparents. They have made us a great nation.

I love the image of a diverse America, a melting pot of different people, sharing their talents and ideas and living here freely together, with respect for and kindness to one another. Surely heaven is like this. Moral leadership is needed, along with the peaceful words and actions of us citizens.

Please support this vision. We’ll be a better and happier nation as a result.

Carl A. “Bud” Bodey, Jr. is a retired insurance agent. He lives in Springfield, Missouri.

This story was originally published February 11, 2026 at 5:04 AM.