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The 'Abolish ICE' movement is growing quickly. Here's why.

In recent weeks, calls for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to be abolished have grown increasingly stronger.

The agency has received backlash after reports revealed numerous incidents where ICE agents abused their power: Agents conducting raids at the homes of non-criminal immigrants, separating children from their parents at the border, subjecting children and adult undocumented immigrants to verbal threats and physical abuse, refusing medical care to those in need, and destroying records of immigrant abuse, including sexual assault and death.

The calls to abolish ICE have risen as a response to the Trump administration's chaotic border immigration strategy and the means by which ICE was enforcing these policies — the most infamous has been the "zero-tolerance" policy that led to the separation of thousands of children from their parents at the border.


The movement to abolish ICE is building political momentum.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez won her New York Democratic primary against incumbent Rep. Joe Crowley with a campaign centered on abolishing ICE. Cynthia Nixon, who is running for New York governor against incumbent Andrew Cuomo, took a more bold stance when she referred to ICE as a "terrorist organization," calling for its removal.

New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio has also called for eliminating the agency. Even Kirsten Gillibrand, who is often noted as a "conservative Democrat," has called for the agency to be either eliminated or "reimagined." She's the first sitting senator to do so.

Most recently, several ICE agents have weighed in, penning a letter that calls to dissolve the agency.

In the letter, addressed to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, 19 ICE investigators supported the elimination of their agency.

But there's a catch. The investigators don't necessarily want to abolish ICE. Rather, they propose the DHS create two bureaus: one specifically for criminal investigations and another for immigration enforcement and deportations.

The investigators' main concern was that the Trump administration's clampdown on immigration and its aggressive deportation of undocumented people were hindering the agency's other responsibilities. As The New York Times identified, these investigators often work in departments dedicated to investigating major criminal offenses ranging from cyber-crimes, drug smuggling, and human trafficking.

But more importantly, we hope that more ICE agents take a stand against inhumane and discriminatory practices within the Trump administration and agency.

Despite the Trump administration's claims to protect national security and fight against drugs and crime, Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisconsin), who recently introduced legislation to abolish ICE, believes that the policies manifested by Trump and enforced by ICE are not done in the best interest of the American people. As Pocan said to Rolling Stone:

"The whole idea of a wall wasn't brought up because we need one, or because we have a problem with people coming into the country in mass amounts. This has been declining in the past 10 years."

Pocan went on to argue that these policies enacted by Donald Trump and enforced by ICE are meant to appease a certain voter base that espouse white supremacist views.

But it looks as though attitudes toward ICE are changing. Let’s just hope more agents within ICE come forward in standing against the agency's abuse of power.

Joy

Sorry, Labradors. After 31 years, America has a new favorite dog.

The American Kennel Club has crowned a new favorite.

via Pixabay

A sad-looking Labrador Retriever

The sweet-faced, loveable Labrador Retriever is no longer America’s favorite dog breed. The breed best known for having a heart of gold has been replaced by the smaller, more urban-friendly French Bulldog.

According to the American Kennel Club, for the past 31 years, the Labrador Retriever was America’s favorite dog, but it was eclipsed in 2022 by the Frenchie. The rankings are based on nearly 716,500 dogs newly registered in 2022, of which about 1 in 7 were Frenchies. Around 108,000 French Bulldogs were recorded in the U.S. in 2022, surpassing Labrador Retrievers by over 21,000.

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Family

Pediatrician shares two simple tips that could save a child's life at a pool party

"The more folks present, the safer the pool is, right? Wrong."

Photo by Ash Dowie on Unsplash

If there's a body of water anywhere, a designated adult needs to have their eyes on it.

It's that time of year when the weather across the country is warm enough for families to enjoy outdoor barbecues, picnics and pool parties. That means it's also the time of year when tragedy will strike a certain percentage of families who get blindsided by how quickly and easily a child can drown in a backyard pool, even when they're surrounded by people who care about them and their safety.

We've all been at a gathering where adults are coming and going, chatting, setting up food, taking trips to the bathroom, all while kids are busy playing in the water. In such scenarios, it's easy to assume that someone else is keeping an eye on the pool.

But as pediatrician Diane Arnaout has shared, the harrowing reality is that the more people there are at a pool party the more likely it is that a child could slip into the pool or become distressed in the water without anyone noticing.

In a Facebook post that has been shared more than 77,000 times, Dr. Arnaout wrote:

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Drew Barrymore speaks during the FLOWER Beauty launch at Westfield Parramatta on April 13, 2019, in Sydney, Australia.

Drew Barrymore, 48, has been in the public consciousness since she starred as Gertie in 1982’s mega-blockbuster, “E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial,” a performance that earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress. So, it makes sense that many people of a certain age feel as if they’ve grown up with her.

Now, she’s an even more significant part of people’s lives as the host of “The Drew Barrymore Show,” which runs every weekday on CBS.

On May 25, the show’s Instagram page posted a touching video of an off-the-cuff moment between Barrymore and a fan during a taping of her show. In the clip, Barrymore realizes that someone in the audience is crying. So, instead of ignoring the fan, she jumps to action to see what is the matter.

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Pop Culture

Musician uses traditional Chinese instrument to create hypnotic cover of 'Hotel California'

There are literally hundreds of covers of this song floating around on the internet, but this one has its own unique flair.

Moyun/Youtube

Moyun peforms "Hotel California" on the guzheng.

The Eagles' hit song, “Hotel California,” has been covered countless times over the years by a variety of artists, including the likes of Nancy Sinatra, the Gypsy Kings and that guy at your local karaoke spot.

And while every rendition gives the song a fresh dynamic, one musician with a penchant for mystery has transformed the rock n’ roll staple into something entirely new.

Using a traditional Chinese string instrument called a guzheng, Moyun plays the song focusing mostly on its two guitar solo arrangements, creating a sound that has all the otherworldly beauty of an ancient folk tale.
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Pop Culture

Man rewatches shows from his childhood and his recaps of the bonkers storylines are priceless

Rob Anderson's hilarious recaps of shows like "Mighty Ducks," "Beethoven," and "7th Heaven" might make you wonder how they got made in the first place.

@hearthrobert/TikTok

These plots makes zero sense.

While there are no doubt some timeless classics from our childhood that remain every bit as amazing as we remember, many are straight-up cringey upon a later viewing. Really, it’s to be expected as societal viewpoints change…sort of a marker of how far we’ve collectively come.

And so, what do we do with these problematic pieces of old-school pop culture? Well, we can certainly update them to better reflect a more modern attitude, but that also comes with a set of potential problems. Or we could simply never watch them again. Certainly an option given all the content out there. But then we might miss an opportunity to better understand what seemed to work for the mainstream then, and why it doesn’t work now.

And then there’s the third option—allow ourselves to be entertained by their cringiness.

That’s certainly the route taken by Rob Anderson. Over on TikTok, Anderson has taken ultra-popular movies and television shows from his childhood and given them hilarious recaps capturing how absurd some of the storylines are.
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Joy

Woman decides that she is the love of her life and marries herself at her retirement home

“I said, you know what, I’ve done everything else. Why not?”

77-year-old woman decides she's the love of her life and marries herself.

We joke about marrying ourselves or a platonic friend if some arbitrary amount of time has passed without a proposal from an imaginary suitor. And sure, some people do wind up marrying a friend in more of a business arrangement, but it's not very common that someone follows through with marrying themselves.

Dorothy "Dottie" Fideli, decided that she was going to break the mold. The 77-year-old sat down and thought about all of the things she had done in life and who was with her the entire time cheering her on. It was an easy answer: herself. She was her biggest cheerleader, the person who always showed up and the love of her life, so Fideli made the plan to marry herself.

On a beautiful May day, friends and family gathered in the O’Bannon Terrace Retirement Community, where Fideli is a resident, to witness the ceremony.

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