Ordinary Day
I wonder. Who were the men and women who arrested Tufts University graduate student Rumeysa Ozturk? Were any of them married? If so, did they kiss their wives or husbands goodbye that morning and tell them they loved them? Did they hug their kids and send them off to school? How was the drive into work? Was the traffic heavy? Did anyone bring Chick-fil-A for breakfast? Were there donuts? Coffee?
Surely they had a meeting before they left on their assignment. Were they reminded to wear masks and to hide their identification? Did anyone say, “Be Safe Out There?” Did anyone joke that it wouldn't be a problem because Rumeysa wasn’t Pablo Escobar. When they got back, were their high fives and fist bumps? Did they mark the arrest on a wall? Did the one agent who forgot to pull up his mask get reprimanded? Are there incentives? How much paperwork was there? Did each agent fill out a report? What gets them a promotion to the next level? What even is the next level? Picking the target? Running multiple teams of agents?
And at the end of the day, did they get to take their vehicles home at night? When they got home that night, how did they answer the question, “How was your day?” What did they say? Could they even talk about it? Did they think about the arrest while they watched their children at play, sitting at dinner, lying in bed with their spouse? Did Ms. Ozturk feel evil? Did the country feel like a better place with her off the streets? Did they wonder how they could do it better the next time? Have they been told the identity of the next enemy of the state who needs removal?