ES NUESTRA HISTORIA

There's been a lot of political unrest this past month, with ICE raids popping up at every corner and a sense of fear that looms over our dismantling democracy. It's terrifying, to put it mildly.

The amount of TikTok videos of "ICE agents" arresting and kidnapping people, using brute force to carry out their heinous acts, is abhorrent. They cover their cowardly faces to draw attention away from their mismatched uniforms. They parade in bulletproof vests that they most definitely bought on Amazon. Some walk around in jeans, while others wear khaki-colored cargos; some wear sneakers, and others wear work boots. There's no unity in their uniform, but there's no doubt that there's unity in their mission: to be paid over $1,000 for each brown person they toss into the back of their unmarked Subarus and F-150s.

I see many people from my community snatched away from their homes and families, their lives. And I am utterly disgusted that we are seeing history repeat itself ... And to make matters worse, Alligator Alcatraz was recently built with taxpayer money to detain all the people they've kidnapped. This is simply another Auschwitz. Not a new concept by any means, but the fact that its existence means that things will probably get a lot worse before they get better. The thought has paralyzed me.

It's been difficult going about daily life. Having to go on and pretend that everything is okay when I wake each morning, haunted by the thought of my people being targeted. I wake up terrified, anxiety coursing through my veins with nothing to soothe it. I wake up with eyes too heavy and a heart that's being crushed by the weight of carrying this fear. The only thing that seems to bring me some peace is writing and creating art.

The piece you see below was created in response to these kidnappings, in response to the reality that my people are facing. "Es nuestra historia" translates to either "it's our history" or "it's our story." Both are true. Our history lives and breathes in the land of the United States (as eight states once belonged to Mexico), and our story continues to be written as time goes on. We know how much the media can distort reality, so it's important that we document what we know to be true, and what we see and experience daily. We have to be the ones to control the narrative. We have to document our reality in any way we can. This digital collage is not only meant to represent our divided nation, the cracks in the foundation of our society, and the agonized plea for peace — this is my way of documenting our current reality.

I may not be a fighter or an organizer, but I am a writer and an artist. I refuse to be on the sidelines of this reality, no matter how difficult it is to live in it. I will use whatever power I have to show that we refuse to comply, that we refuse to leave our stories and history in the hands of those trying to erase them. I will use writing and art to document the truth of the world we live in and how cruel and scary it has been.

"ES NUESTRA HISTORIA" © Digital collage by Alexis M. Romo (June 2025). Please do not reproduce without permission.

But no matter how bleak everything seems, no matter how much fear I walk out with and carry on my shoulders each day, I am hopeful. I am optimistic. I have to believe that things will change for the better. I have to believe that there's a life, an existence, that is rooted in peace and love instead of fear and hatred.

And maybe that belief is naive. Maybe that belief is nothing more than optimism wrapped in delusion. But one day, perhaps in a thousand years, I believe this place will be a paradise. That's the hope I hold onto. That is reason enough for me to keep on fighting: to make sure that this place becomes that paradise, even if I don't live long enough to see it happen.

And for all of you reading this, remember that change does not come without sacrifice. Change does not come without stepping in front of what scares you and demanding something better. Change does not come with one person's voice or fight — it comes bit by bit, from every single one of us.

Please look out for your community during these times. Use whatever privilege and power you have to support those who are directly affected by these raids. Donate your money to causes that help immigrants and their families. Spread information from reliable sources. Protest. Defend and protect your neighbors. Demand action from your government officials. Create art. Document these stories. Most importantly, rest when you need to. Change is a marathon, not a sprint.

With much love and appreciation,

Alexis M. Romo