Orwell’s insights relevant today
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Minneapolis residents Renee Good and Alex Pretti were fatally shot by ICE and U.S. Border Patrol agents. President Donald Trump called Pretti an “agitator and, perhaps, insurrectionist.” Without evidence, White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller labelled him a “domestic terrorist” and a “would-be assassin.”
Notably, a frame-by-frame analysis by CNN shows that shots 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 were all fired while Pretti lay incapacitated on his back.
George Orwell, author of the dystopian novel “1984,” observed that “atrocities are believed in or disbelieved in solely on grounds of political predilection. Everyone believes in the atrocities of the enemy and disbelieves in those of his own side, without ever bothering to examine the evidence.”
In fact, Trump’s Department of Justice filed a motion challenging a judge’s order that barred the destruction of evidence in the Pretti case.
I strongly encourage watching the 2025 documentary “2+2=5.” The film explores Orwell’s life and applies his ideas to recent events like actions by the Trump administration, Gaza, immigration and the treatment of the Rohingya in Myanmar. His insights are timeless.
It’s crucial to recognize that selective memories of aggression have long been used to justify state violence.
How wonderful to see that Winnipeg cyclists held a memorial ride honouring Pretti. We owe a debt of thanks to those who document, protest and refuse to look away. Without these activists, the truth of what happened to Alex Pretti and Renee Good might never have come to light.
TERRY HANSEN
Grafton, Wis.