01/30/2026
When ICE Comes to Our Village
By Belle Lyons
When ICE comes to our village,
what will you do?
When the five-year-old boy in the blue bunny hat
is the same boy in your child’s class
who shares his lunch with her
just as freely as the smiles that dance between them.
The five-year-old whose mother was celebrated
and honored and nurtured
while she carried him in her womb,
while our community carried her in ours.
The five-year-old whose father works hard every day
to support his family and his friends,
who bares his soul freely to the scrutiny of the news
like we don’t see his sacrifice.
The five-year-old whose Tía cooked the food
for your own wedding,
your birthday,
your mother’s celebration of life.
I don’t speak Spanish,
but I ought to learn.
I honor my community,
and I honor yours.
I see who is doing the work.
I see the love that grows there.
If the day comes that ICE shows up on our island,
my family will stand with yours.
And that is a subject I will not leave to whim.
You will never have to guess where I stand.
Because on Lopez,
I stand with my village,
the whole village.
And I hope that some of you
turn inward
and recognize the ground that you stand on
and the privilege you hold.
In support of the nationwide shutdown Lopez Grind Coffee Shop will be closed Tomorrow Friday January 30th, 2026.
