In condemnation of online hate

Readers of The Riverdale Press may have noticed that the paper has begun running what is known in the industry as a “service journalism” piece each week. The piece appears on page A8 of the paper --- A7 this week --- and has provided information on air quality amid Canadian wildfire smoke, flooding during our torrential summer storms and reader questions answered by local officials. So far, these pieces have received sprinklings of positive feedback.

That changed when we published a piece about U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The piece, “5 things residents should know about ICE presence in New York City,” ran in print to little commotion. A day later, as is the paper’s custom, the piece was shared online. Again, all was quiet.

Then, gradually, the week’s social media posts began to be sent out into our online feeds. Our social media channels have been garnering support and engagement in recent months that we have been proud of — notification boxes that had been quiet now routinely fill with likes, shares and thoughtful comments. No recent post, however, has seen as many comments as the post about this article.

Within hours, dozens of comments flooded the post. Within days, hundreds.

Very few of those comments were positive. Many were derogatory toward immigrants, applauding the aggressive, often inhumane tactics ICE has been documented as using on citizens and undocumented individuals alike, regardless of their innocence.

The article itself shared background information on the formation of ICE, what its agents can and cannot do in our communities and how individuals can prepare themselves for potential interactions by knowing their rights. A sizable portion of the comments were rooted solidly in racism. We understood, when writing about a topic as contentious as modern immigration enforcement, that it may garner intense reactions. While we cannot control what users choose to comment online, we can control how we respond to those comments.

The Riverdale Press absolutely condemns the racism and hatred expressed in that comment section, and in conversations about immigration enforcement in the U.S. more broadly. When our country finds itself in a place where it not only allows community members to be accosted in broad daylight, families to be torn apart, but hundreds, if not thousands of people feel comfortable publicly applauding these instances online, we must ask ourselves who we have become, and what values we truly uphold as a nation.

It is telling when so many feel empowered to tear others down, to make fellow community members, business owners, parents, children out to be something less than human. When there is, apparently, no shame around doing so, no real-world consequences for doing so.

Of course, in this strange online age we live in, there is the possibility that some of these users are “bots,” farming engagement with vile comments algorithmically designed to spark a reaction. But not all of them are. And while no news organization has ultimate sway over who their posts reach, or expectations that posts will be met with unwavering positivity, The Press’ online platforms are not a space for planting seeds of hate, for dehumanizing our neighbors.

Human beings deserve human dignity. Hate speech that attempts to strip members of our community of that dignity is not something to which we can turn a blind eye. Those who immigrate to this country to carve out opportunities for themselves and their families are what make our borough the vibrant, multifaceted place we are so proud to call home. Our borough, our city, our country are not special because of those they keep out, but because of those they welcome in.

Everyone on our country’s soil is granted certain rights. Basic rights. Human rights. Feeling a sense of righteousness, or satisfaction when those lines are crossed is not patriotism. Instead, it is holding our nation accountable and pushing it to uphold and expand upon the values, the inalienable rights upon which it was built. These are the very foundations of our country. Foundations that, throughout our history, various groups have fought to build and protect.

That fight has never been an easy one. Our country has more of its share of ugliness and inhumanity paving the path to its current state. Now, we are again faced with a choice of what we want to fight for. That choice is simple: choose compassion. Choose humanity.