"The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.” ― George Orwell, 1984
On January 24, 2026, Alex Pretti, a nurse who was in the midst of protecting a woman who had fallen in a group of protesters against ICE, was shot by a member of ICE in the midst of an event. Reports say that he had been shot multiple times in the scuffle, bleeding out, and eventually losing his own life. 84 years ago, a boy by the name of Helmuth Hübener lost his own life in the midst of fighting against the Nazi Regime for the Jewish and oppressed. At just 17 years old, Helmuth wrote and distributed pamphlets, speaking out against the lies of Germany, illegally listened to the BBC radio, and in return, was captured and executed by the guillotine on October 27, 1942.
Each of these victims lived in a country that desired the promise of liberation, and in return, was given the opposite.
In the year 1944, 16 million American soldiers were sent to fight the Axis powers, which consisted of Germany and Japan. Even with such a late start, Germany would soon find out just how determined the alliance was to avenge the 6 million people that the Nazi’s took.
However, in our modern day – from ICE dragging children and families out of their homes, to the senseless killing, and the idea that immigrants are 'stealing jobs’ in our country – could we as the American people be joining the same ranks as our enemies?
We aren't necessarily leaving people in camps to die like the Nazi’s. But seeing as how the same President who promised voters a stable economy, is now enforcing taxes on resources from neighboring and foreign countries, raises some concerns. As referenced by an article by the Tax Foundation, 22 Aug. 2025: “ In 2025, the Trump tariffs amounted to an average tax increase per US household of $1,000. After the IEEPA tariffs were struck down, we estimate the President’s remaining new tariffs under Section 232 will increase taxes per US household by $400 in 2026. The Section 122 tariffs will increase this household burden by about $300 to $700 in 2026.” And thus, with such a promise seemingly not coming into fruition as Trump had assured, you might be wondering about the whereabouts of this “better economy”.
ABC News reported on YouTube, 18 July 2024, President Trump declaring that “Undocumented Immigrants Were Taking Jobs from Black, Latino Population.” Here the President claimed that the cause of a lack of a better economy was due to the tariffs he unleashed, but a secret enemy that lay among the 'true’ American people: immigrants.
Soon after, ICE swept in, deportations pulled people off the streets, and bloodshed followed. There had been poor training for ICE staff before the start of deportations, and soon after, it would seem training would no longer even be a requirement. According to PBS News, 4 Dec. 2025: “As ICE boosts recruitment, critics are concerned over changes to hiring and training standard.” What would follow next would be disastrous.
According to the Guardian, 4 Jan. 2026: “2025 Was ICE’s Deadliest Year in Two Decades, thirty-two people died in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody in 2025 – making it the agency’s deadliest year in more than two decades, as the Trump administration moved to detain a record number of people.” 36 people died within custody of ICE in the year 2025 due to the deportation process, three of whom had been fatally shot by the Border Patrol while out on the streets, as referenced by The Trace, 8 Dec. 2025, in their article on ICE’s immigration raids, titled “How Many People Have Been Shot in ICE Raids?”
So with all this to mind, could ICE be compared to the likes of Nazis? What do the youth of our generation think?
Dayanna Guerra: “I think if we look into what the Nazi’s did, most people think the Holocaust was a very fast thing that probably took like a year. But the reality of it is that it took 10 years for it to lead up to the catastrophe that it was. And I feel like that's kind of in the road we’re leading (towards).”
Makalya Holley: “I feel like it’s kind of turning into Germany right now. And I also think about that video we watched during the Holocaust assembly (“Don't Be a Sucker” 1942 - 1947 by US National Archives). Like first – you start off thinking it’s only Jewish, then it’s the Catholics, then it’s everybody else. First, everybody thinks that they’re only deporting Hispanic people, then they start deporting black people, and Asian people, and even white people, and now they’re trying to deport Native Americans.”
Interestingly enough, the blaming and isolating of minorities is not a method that is only used by the Trump administration. This isn’t an uncommon occurrence throughout history, as Nazi Germany had used these methods as well, when they began to realize that the economic promises of a better Germany and the end of nationwide hunger had yet to come to fruition.
Natalya Santiago: “Trump doesn’t want to make it out to seem that he is the problem. He wants to deflect and make everything seem like other people are the problem. Like everybody says, there’s always somebody to blame. Him saying that the immigrants are taking away jobs, they’re the reasons why prices are going up – it’s just him trying to not take accountability for the fact that anything that he does is not working and is not in the best interest of the American people. Because he really doesn’t care about us.”
The idea that our own country could be falling apart isn’t an easy topic to grapple with. Our generation has only heard of the fascism that has happened in our history books. For us to experience it is a different story. Now, Gen Z is the generation to have seen this political world shift firsthand. Standing as witnesses to the mistakes of those who have come before us, with the capabilities of hopefully advancing away from them with the help of older generations who have seen the harm inflicted from fascism.
Ms. Zania Collier, Co-op history teacher:“I don’t think it has anything to do with economic policies. I think it has everything to do with baiting his base who are ignorant to the policies in this country. Who themselves suffer more than the people they’re targeting financially, educationally. How are they going tell somebody to go back to Puerto Rico where you belong when Puerto Rico is an American territory? Everything that he speaks of is based on hate, whether it’s racist or misogynistic, and he knows that his base is going to get excited and follow him blindly. And it’s working for him. Unfortunately, we live in a society where I believe they hate themselves, so they look for things in other people, so they can also hate.”
Ms. Collier continued: “Well, I hope Gen Z stands up and makes their voices heard. If they are truly outraged by the acts of ICE, Trump, MAGA, and all the other racist organizations in this country. I tell all my students, you need to vote! You need to encourage your family to vote. Anyone who is of age and registered – if they’re not registered, get them registered. Because if you continue not to vote, if you continue to sit back to watch stuff on TV, or look at stuff on the internet or social media – the things will continue to happen. Voting is action, it's political action, and it can make changes. If you don’t believe me, look what happened in the 60s with the civil rights movement. Look what happened in the 1920s when women united together to get the right to vote. When you band together, and when you band together for goodness, when you unite for justice, for all? Things could happen. We can stop them!”
Although it may seem as if peace has already slipped from our fingertips, thankfully, history is made not only of tragedies. And what better way to show that than looking to our own ancestors? Generations who have fought for their justice and truth. Gen Z is no different. We are all the more capable of turning the tide due to our past. So whether it be that our own leaders are suppressing us, or that they’re more corrupt than we initially believed – as long as we show up, there’s always room for change!