Santa Ana, California - These are scenes reminiscent of dictatorships: A man stands on the sidewalk, a weed trimmer on his back, trying to flee. Masked men in vests marked as US Border Patrol agents overpower him, spray him with pepper spray, beat him to the ground, handcuff him, continue beating him - and finally haul him into an unmarked vehicle. No ID, no arrest warrant, no explanation. Just violence. The man’s name is Narciso Barranco, 48 years old, a landscaper. His three sons wear the uniform - that of the US Marines. Two of them are currently on active duty. Welcome to an America that no longer pretends to be free. Barranco was arrested in broad daylight in Santa Ana (Orange County) by a group of masked agents. The Department of Homeland Security claims he threatened the agents with his weed trimmer. But what the available footage shows is no attack - it is an assault. A targeted seizure of an unarmed civilian. According to witnesses, Barranco was already on the ground, handcuffed, kneeling, when additional blows were delivered to his face. One eyewitness said, “They treated him like an animal. And he had done nothing - he was working.” The authorities speak of “necessary force.” The family speaks of state abuse. And the public? Is silent.
Narciso Barranco, according to hospital reports, suffered a dislocated shoulder and multiple bruises. In ICE custody, he received no medical care or food for over 24 hours. His family, shocked and stripped of rights, had to start a fundraising campaign - over 48,000 dollars were raised just to secure his legal defense. But money does not heal injuries. And it does not replace the rule of law. We do not report to elicit pity. We do not write to stir emotions. Our task is investigation. And help. Sober. Relentless. Uncompromising. The world must not look away when masked agents in the United States begin abducting people from their daily lives like in a police state. This is not about isolated incidents - it is about structures, about a new culture of fear. And it is up to us to make it visible before silence becomes the norm.
We are not feeders for clicks. We are not suppliers of outrage on demand. Anyone working in journalism today must choose: integrity or indifference. Narciso Barranco is not a hero. He is a human being. And that is precisely why his case is a benchmark. For justice. For violence. And for the question of whether we as a society still know what justice even means. Whether people like us or not - we don’t care. But the journalistic approach is getting tougher. No clown quotes, but resistance - without excuses. Right where it’s happening. Not on the couch. Not in decommissioned wire-service journalism (yawn).
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