From the newsroom

I've been working for Cascadia Daily News for the better part of two weeks and in that time, two things have become clear.

One, we have our work cut out for us when it comes to covering immigration enforcement and two, the CDN newsroom is filled with talented and tenacious reporters ready to take on the task.

In fact, we already have.

Last week, my colleague Sophia Gates and I covered U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's detainment of Alfredo "Lelo" Juarez Zeferino and the protest that sparked outside the Tacoma detention facility where he's being held.

Today, Charlotte Alden and I went to the roofing company where 37 workers were detained and taken away by bus.

We arrived at a somewhat incongruous scene. A line of traffic cones separated law enforcement from workers and family members of the detainees.

On one side, these family members sobbed, held their heads in disbelief and begged for more information on their sons, brothers and husbands. On the other, officers, masks and sunglasses obscuring their faces, leaned against their unmarked cars and made small talk.

This raid did not appear to be designed with empathy in mind for the detainees and their families.

Though it is not my job as a journalist to determine whether there is cause for these detainments, I know each one represents a tragedy for the community.

Think about how many people love you and how many people would miss you if you disappeared. Multiply that by the number of people taken away during a raid, in this case, 37, and it becomes clear the effects of these federal actions will ripple throughout all the communities in CDN's coverage area.

As the work of covering these new immigration enforcement policies continues, I'm relieved at least, to be working with a team that embodies the empathy and sense of communal responsibility that makes for good and accurate reporting.

You can find the Spanish translation of Charlotte and I's story here. 

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