Recently Avelo Airlines announced it would no longer provide ICE with flights to transport abductees. CEO Andrew Levy wrote: “We moved a portion of our fleet into a government program which promised more financial stability but placed us in the center of a political controversy. … The program provided short-term benefits but ultimately did not deliver enough consistent and predictable revenue to overcome its operational complexity and costs.” Avelo didn’t admit that negative publicity motivated its decision, but businesses never like to say such things.
Some people on Bluesky blasted Avelo for saying costs and lack of revenue were the reason. A person with a large following wrote: “If they’d been profitable, # Avelo would have continued transporting kidnapped Americans. The only thing saving us is MAGA incompetence.” That takes away all the credit from the people who spoke against Avelo’s collaboration. It discourages people from speaking out in the future. When a campaign is successful, we should celebrate its success. Good news is too scarce to ignore when it comes.
Last week, I attended a protest in Merrimack, NH against ICE’s reported consideration of the town as the site of a future human warehouse. Hundreds of people attended; some estimates said a thousand or more. It was the day after ICE fatally shot Renee Good, which doubtless contributed to the large turnout. ICE’s actions are bad news, but the size of the protest was good.
People can’t live on a steady diet of bad news. They’ll give up. In December of 1776, the revolutionary cause looked hopeless. The British controlled lower New York and New Jersey, and Washington’s forces had been driven back into Pennsylvania. He led an audacious attack on Trenton because he knew a positive outcome was desperately needed. It could have been the final failure, but it worked and ultimately led to victory.
Give credit to businesses that don’t follow the anti-immigrant, pro-violence line. When businesses say immigrants are welcome, we should mention that. There are socialists whose real motive is hatred of all private businesses, and they’ll never admit that one has done something positive. They won’t be satisfied until the economy is completely run by the government whose actions they claim to oppose.
Supporting businesses that won’t abet a lawless Gestapo helps to undercut it. Pointing out successes encourages further support. Spread the good news when it comes.