This is Deeply Personal to Me…

By Ben Meiselas

Many of you might know I live in Los Angeles. The right-wing Supreme Court ruled at the end of last week that ICE can racially profile Latinos based on how they look, where they work, and where they live. At the same time, Trump is trying to declare birthright citizenship unconstitutional as well.

As you may know, my daughter’s name is Ximena. She is now 11 months old. My wife’s name is Xochitl. She was born in the United States when her parents migrated here from Guadalajara over 35 years ago. Her mom and her family all have citizenship, thankfully. Nonetheless, her family lives in the town that is most frequently targeted by ICE in Los Angeles. The videos you see in the Home Depot parking lot or the car washes or other businesses getting attacked are just a few blocks from where they live. When the Supreme Court approved “roving ICE patrols” in Latino areas, those patrols took place literally on the block where my family lives. Most of the businesses in the once-vibrant city center area are now shuttered.

My nieces and nephews from my wife’s side of the family go to LAUSD schools in town. They are trained not to talk to ICE agents. They are trained to avoid being kidnapped by federal officials and what to say during a kidnap attempt. Many of their friends no longer attend school. People like my mother-in-law don’t go to church or the gym as frequently as they once did. I reflect on how I am bringing Ximena up in this world.

Sometimes, I think about whether I should just move with them all to Mexico to make sure their quality of life is better. It is exhausting to be under the constant harassment of ICE as they are. But then I quickly remember my fight is here—what we are leading together. I think about how Trump and Stephen Miller and their ICE Gestapo don’t want people named Ximena in the United States who look like my wife and daughter. I know that I am fighting for my family now. This is deeply personal.

But I’m not just fighting for my family. I am fighting for all the families out there who are going through something similar, regardless of whether you’re Latino, Asian, Arab, African, or any other group or ethnicity. Beyond ethnicity, I know I am also fighting for everyone who is struggling in America to make ends meet in Trump’s dystopia.

If you asked me five years ago when I was a litigator representing Colin Kaepernick or representing families in Bakersfield and Kern County what I would be doing in five years, I would never have predicted this.

I am a kid from Long Island who went to Georgetown Law School and took his first job in LA in 2010. I became a civil rights litigator, met the love of my life, Xochitl, who I married last year, and have the cutest munchkin imaginable named Ximena. I never expected to start a media company or be a podcaster or do anything I am doing now.

But I hope the unique life and professional experiences I’ve had along the way—whether it’s leading grassroots movements in Central California or teaching law at USC Law School—have given me the tools to fight now.

This is a time we must fight. Not run.

It’s not a time for running. I am sure everyone reading this has a unique skill set that is helpful right now to fight the fascism in the United States, and when we combine all our skills, we are unstoppable.

I know this is all deeply personal to you as well. But I also know, like me, this fight is more than our own life experience. This is about our shared experiences inhabiting this planet at this period of time in history together and ensuring future generations are given the chances they deserve.

This fight is for my daughter Ximena, it’s for my nieces and nephews, it’s for your family and your children and grandchildren, and for our country and our planet.

Donald Trump and his regime care about greed and power only. They’ve underestimated that we fight with our values, with humility, and with moral authority and moral clarity. That’s our superpower: taking the personal and fighting for all the people in the struggle.

Thanks for taking this time with me to read this. And thanks for all the support you give the MeidasTouch Network, which has been built to fight for this moment. The best way to help the MeidasTouch Network operate and grow is by subscribing now to this Substack or gifting subscriptions to people you know. I am often asked about the best way to help. In addition to spreading the word about us, your subscriptions to this Substack give you access to bonus features like the exclusive podcast I do today with Ron Filipkowski, but they also help fuel the network.

Thanks for reading this and thanks for fighting with