granddaughter of
The granddaughter of EB White, author of “Charlotte’s Web,” criticized the Trump administration after the Department of Homeland Security used the beloved children’s book title in its immigration crackdown.
On Saturday, DHS announced it would launch “Operation Charlotte Network,” as the immigration raid in the Charlotte, North Carolina, area is called. Federal immigration agents made more than 130 arrests in the region over the weekend, Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said.
Gregory Bovino, a top Border Patrol official, boasted about the arrests made in Charlotte and cited the children’s book in a social media post.
“Wherever the wind takes us. High, low. Near, far. East, west. North, south. We let ourselves be carried by the breeze, we go as we want,” he wrote. “This time, the breeze hit Charlotte like a storm. From the border towns to Queen City, our agents go where the mission calls them.”
Martha White, who oversees her late grandfather’s estate, took issue with the government’s appropriation of EB White’s work.
“He believed in the rule of law and due process,” Martha White said of her grandfather in a statement to CNN.
“[He] “I certainly didn’t believe in masked men, in unmarked cars, breaking into homes and workplaces without ID or subpoenas,” he added. “I didn’t tolerate fear-mongering.”
White also cited a quote from the spider character Charlotte, who uses her web to save the pig Wilbur from being killed by a farmer.
“By helping you, maybe I was trying to make my life a little better,” said the spider in the book. “God knows anyone’s life can take a little bit of that.”
Ryan Murphy via Getty Images
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In its original announcement, DHS said the operation would target “criminal illegal aliens who flocked to the Tar Heel State because they knew sanctuary politicians would protect them.” However, as CNN noted, Charlotte is not a “sanctuary city.” It is a “Certified Welcoming City,” a formal designation that recognizes a city’s commitment to immigrant inclusion.
Local officials said the federal crackdown on immigration has caused “unnecessary fear and uncertainty” and led to “community chaos.” North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein (D) also criticized federal agents for “stoking fear” and “racially profiling” people in Charlotte.