By John Q. Hosedrinker 
A California man and former Trump voter, Brian Gavidia, was detained by immigration agents during a federal operation, leading him to believe he was targeted due to his race. Gavidia, who is now part of a lawsuit challenging immigration enforcement tactics, recounted how he was pushed against a wall and questioned about his citizenship. Department of Homeland Security officials maintain that such allegations of targeting are false, stating that enforcement operations are highly targeted and based on legal status. The case is now before the U.S. Supreme Court, which will decide the fate of restrictions limiting broad-based immigration enforcement in Los Angeles.
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“I truly believe I was targeted because of my race,” Gavidia told the outlet, adding elsewhere in the interview, “We were all brainwashed.”
This phrase, “We were all brainwashed,” is the core of the story. It’s a sentiment that drips with a certain type of regret, the kind born of personal consequence. Let’s be real, though: for many, the realization of this “brainwashing” comes far too late. It’s a classic case of, “It’s only a problem when it happens to me.” The lack of empathy, the inability to see the bigger picture until it directly impacts their own lives, is a stark and frankly, disheartening feature of this situation. It’s easy to feel a dwindling well of compassion when someone finally recognizes the error of their ways only after they’ve been personally affected by the very policies they supported.
The accusation of being “brainwashed” can often be a convenient excuse, but it’s important to understand the nuances of the situation. The idea that everyone was equally manipulated is a stretch. Some people were undoubtedly susceptible to certain narratives, perhaps due to a lack of critical thinking or a pre-existing bias. But let’s not forget that the appeal of someone like Trump wasn’t purely accidental. There were years, billions of dollars, and a carefully constructed strategy to capitalize on existing anger, fear, and prejudice. For some, it wasn’t about being “brainwashed”; it was about being emboldened. Trump didn’t create these feelings; he gave them a platform.
The most striking aspect of this entire situation is the selective blindness. You can’t help but notice the recurring theme: “They didn’t care until it happened to them.” It’s a harsh reality, but it’s a reality nonetheless. If someone, regardless of background, voted for policies that would negatively affect people they consider “others,” how can we give them sympathy when those policies eventually impact them? It’s very hard to see this as a “my bad” situation. No one can feel bad for the people who voted for the hate.
If you actively vote against the best interests of groups of people, you aren’t “brainwashed,” you’re just making a choice. The claim that you were “brainwashed” after witnessing events like the January 6th insurrection is a display of ignorance, and some would even argue it is ignorant bliss. The actions taken have had consequences. They voted to make the lives of people around them worse, and now they are suffering the consequences of their choices. There’s a clear lesson here: listen to the experts. If economists, scientists, psychologists, and countless others are warning against something, it might be worth taking heed.
There’s a certain schadenfreude in seeing someone who, through their own choices, supported a system that eventually turned on them. There’s no way to ignore the fact that, as Gavidia pointed out, the campaign began with messages rooted in negativity. It’s hard to understand how anyone would choose that unless they were looking for a justification of that prejudice. He ran on “mass deportations.” You knew this. You chose it.
The fact that he admits the mistake, and the feeling that they may have been targeted due to their race, is not a get-out-of-jail-free card. The sentiment, “I believe it was a mistake because he ran on lies,” reveals a key element of the regret, but doesn’t change the fact that a lot of the harm caused was obvious from the start. We’re not going to forgive and forget, or act like it wasn’t happening, or that it didn’t matter.
What has become more and more clear is that supporting someone with problematic views because you thought he would change society for you in the short term, and in the end, supporting the policies that hurt the people you voted for and didn’t care about, has to be the biggest lesson of all. The only regret coming from this situation, should be the support of a system in which all of the abuse of others was seen as deserved.