To the Editor:

I too am concerned about what is happening in our country but I was really shocked when I saw the article in The Altamont Enterprise that there are local residents possibly warning criminals that potentially ICE is in their neighborhoods by making whistleblower kits [“In wake of Good’s death, scores turn out at Guilderland library to make whistleblower kits,” The Altamont Enterprise, Jan. 13, 2026].

We all know ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] is conducting operations to take illegal aliens with heinous criminal histories into custody. Some of those arrested include criminals convicted of murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, and endangering the welfare of a child.

We also all know that some people do not feel safe in many of our cities because of these thugs, and I welcome the efforts to get dangerous criminals off of our streets.

Sanctuary-city policies created this mess, and now the federal government is stepping in to fix it. These illegal aliens are living everywhere, which could include our neighborhoods. Do you really, really know your neighbors?

ICE is federal law enforcement and they should be treated as such. There is no need to obstruct or interfere with lawful criminal investigations.

Remember: They are enforcing federal law. Too many citizens of the United States of America have been murdered or hurt by these criminals — why on Earth would you protect them and put yourself in danger between them and law enforcement?

If there are people in your neighborhood who are here legally they have nothing to worry about nor do they need you to help them hide from ICE.     

Betty Filkins

Westerlo

Editor’s note: For the first time, under the Trump administration, immigrants with no criminal record are now the largest group in United States immigration detention, according to government data released in September. This is markedly different from the prior administration when immigrants with no criminal record in detention were close to zero; about 5,000 with pending cases were detained, and about 10,000 with criminal records were detained.

Under the Trump administration, only 5 percent of individuals booked into ICE detention had a violent criminal conviction, according to the Cato Institute, while 73 percent have no convictions at all.