NBC’s Chicago P.D. took a very political turn this week, diving into illegal immigration and emphasizing the struggles of Latinos in America.
The October 11 episode titled “Promise” started off with Latino Detective Antonio Dawson encouraging his high school senior daughter to use her ethnic identity for the affirmative action route into the college of her choice. She wasn’t so inclined but between his encouragement and that of her high school counselor, she agreed.
Antonio: Just so we're clear, if you're gonna live with me, you have to be self-sufficient. I'll help however I can, but my hours are a little crazy.
Eva: I'll be fine.
Antonio: This is a big year for you.
Eva: I know. You keep saying that.
Antonio: Because it's true. How's the college essay coming?
Eva: My counselor said I should write about being a Latina. All the obstacles.
Antonio: That's a good one.
Eva: I think it's B.S., but if it'll help me get into Northwestern or Brown, fine.
Antonio: Wait, you don't think there are obstacles for Latinos?
Eva: I do, but not for me.
Antonio: Trust me. The world is not as color-blind as you think.
Eva: Why are you so mad? I don't--
Antonio: I'm not mad. I just don't want you to forget who you are and where you come from. That's-- We have to take a rain check on the movie, come on. Come on, let's go.
How refreshing. The teenager realizes in the year 2017, the same old complaints of racial inequality her father’s generation are not necessarily relevant in the upcoming generation’s lives.
Antonio is called to a homicide involving an illegal alien who was assumed to be a drug mule for a Mexican cartel gang. Turns out, she was a meat packing plant employee illegally in America from Guatemala. Bukowski Meat Packing hired lots of illegal aliens as cheap labor. The owner said they “do the jobs other people won’t do.” Please. Spare me that tired open-borders liberal trope.
The murdered woman’s sister also worked at the plant. She wouldn’t talk to the police, though, and the others would not, either. They were afraid of an ICE raid. The son of the owner was brought in for questioning as the investigation progressed. He had gone out with the murdered woman and thought to be a suspect.
When the son was brought into custody, the owner called ICE himself and had his employees taken away to protect his son, calling it self-reporting. Though Antonio had promised the sister that he would protect her from deportation if she would talk to him, she, too, was taken in the raid. Antonio was upset the feds were able to take her away even though Chicago is a sanctuary city, but the sister was deported because she was deported three years ago and came back in illegally, so this was a felony charge for her – automatic deportation.
The story finally got around to figuring out the murderer. He was an immigrant himself from Mexico who was quite proud that he did it the right way. Brought here at the age of three, he did the proper paperwork and became an American citizen. He worked at the meat packing plant as a delivery van driver. His anger towards illegal aliens drove him to murder.
Lopez: I was making a delivery, left my keys inside. You know, I was so embarrassed. Nothing like that's ever happened to me before. I called 911. You can check.
Antonio: We did. Why didn't you call your boss?
Lopez: Well, I was hoping you guys would find it before I had to tell him.
Voight: MM. Maybe you were trying to destroy the evidence linking you to Gloria Morales.
Antonio: Come on, we talked to you at the plant. You lied. You said you didn't know her.
Lopez: I didn't recognize her.
Antonio: You gave her a ride in that company van. We have a witness that saw you with Gloria two nights ago.
Lopez: I give lots of illegals rides. They have such a hard life, you know?
Antonio: You were born in Mexico.
Lopez: I came over when I was a baby. I did it the right way.
Antonio: Oh! Oh, okay!
Lopez: I got my papers, and became a citizen. I'm an American!
Voight: You're also a person of interest in the murder of an immigrant woman from Tucson.
Lopez: There's no evidence.
Voight: What's all this? What's that mean?
Lopez: Peace.
Voight: You're a real peaceful guy, huh?
Lopez: That's right.
Antonio: Tell me, why do you hate your own people so much?
Lopez: They're not my people. They're illegal aliens. They break our laws and take our jobs. They make my life worse; they don't make it better. And if she would have stayed where she belonged, in her own country, she'd still be alive!
Antonio: If she never met you, she'd still be alive.
Voight: Come on, let's go.
So, the guy who did it all the right way and became an American citizen is made to be the murderer in this episode.
The police were very aggressively carrying out the local Chicago decision to be a sanctuary city and never be concerned about immigration status of suspects or people questioned in the investigation. Sgt. Voight even referred to the meat packing plant employees as innocent people. He said, as the investigation kept hitting obstacles, that “so far all we’ve gotten out of this investigation is twenty innocent people deported.” They weren’t “innocent” at all, though, if you believe in upholding the law. That’s something police used to be able to do in America.
