ICE. Governmental agency continues to do. carnage, violating the rights of people taking lives. returning the families of their victims upside down. So you have some viralosity here uh and [00:00:23] a very touching story and also a very sad reality. Criselle DeVasquez, a California based artist known for making dignified portraits of her family, has suffered a tragedy while her parents [00:00:39] featured in a painting that went viral in 2017. were recently taken by Ice Agent. I want to talk about the art, but I want you to see this. See how beautiful this is? Man, that's real talent, isn't That's genius, novel talent. [00:01:01] Vasquez's portraits uh often uh feature family members, especially mother and father, depicted with quiet dignity, vibrant textures, and massive scale. By presenting everyday Latinx people [00:01:21] in old paintings reminiscent of European masters, she disrupts the idea of what, quote, fine art should look like. and who it should represent. Vasquez wrote on her Instagram, quote, my parents [00:01:39] are the reason I chose to paint the new American Gothic on Tuesday, March 31st. My family experienced our worst fear. My father and one of his workers were detained by ICE while simply on their [00:01:55] way to work. Our entire family is heartbroken. and my mother is completely devastated. My father has lived in the United States for 40 years. quote, he is a devoted husband, father [00:02:11] and grandfather and the hardest working person I know. Please consider supporting our family during this incredibly difficult time by donating to our GoFundMe. We provide the GoFundMe link any amount or even sharing this message means more to us than words can express. Family members [00:02:31] have lunches GoFundMe. I'm asking that you do the very best you can. We will provide it in the and description section of this video. I want to tell you why this story is special and why, why people mean you, all of us. should resonate to it. Because it says something. [00:02:54] It says that while there is tragedy, There is the unexpected. ah There is the thing that you feared would happen, And then there's this response. that provides an expression of strength [00:03:18] to not allow the moment to define who you are. You are the one who defines the moment. And so I'm thankful for the leadership of this person, their family. I pray you reunite it with your [00:03:36] parents. All right, give brother thoughts. uh damaging and consequential. ah byproducts of this xenophobic movement that Donald Trump has ushered in, but did not create, certainly. [00:03:53] He's tapping into a very real base of people who were and are xenophobic and racist that have given him power. One of the more problematic components of that is the way that we have now been conditioned to demonize people, mean, dehumanize people, dehumanize people. Once [00:04:14] we have- I have debates with right wingers and they refer to, first of all, they call them illegals. A person cannot be illegal. These are human beings and I always have to start conversation tonight. They're human beings with hearts and souls and personalities and histories [00:04:32] and culture. And they are congruently human being with you and I. All of us are on this globe together. We all have lives, we all are worth respect, just based on that formulaic principle right there. uh And the minute that you start to dehumanize people, the minute [00:04:49] that you have the capability to dehumanize people, I think that's when evil takes root. And you see governmental agencies enacting the state uh sponsored violence and shooting people in the streets and snatching people out without a care in the world. folks like Donald Trump [00:05:04] and Steve Miller, they're just numbers on a page. They couldn't give a rip about uh destabilizing the community. They couldn't give a rip about ripping a family apart. So I applaud this artist for rehumanizing this group of people because I think we all need to lock in with [00:05:20] the reality that look, these are lives, actual human being lives who are being destroyed, largely through no fault of their own. Yeah, well said, Debra.