It’s Thursday, September 18. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press—and our take on the world at large. Today: Why is Gen Z out of work? Charlie Kirk and Judaism. An afternoon with Woody Allen. And much more.
But first: Arrested, chained, and deported.
Over the last few weeks, Free Press reporter Frannie Block and freelance journalist Mónica Cordero have spent hours interviewing a 33-year-old Ecuadorian man who was arrested by ICE agents when he appeared in immigration court in June. These courts—where immigrants, following the rules, arrive to have their asylum claims heard—have become traps, places where ICE agents nab them and send them back without their claims ever being considered.
The man Frannie and Mónica spoke to, known only as R.A. in court documents, described a horrific ordeal after his arrest that no one deserves for simply trying to gain legal status in the U.S. He says he was put in chains, stuffed into crowded cells without enough beds or toilets, and shuttled to a series of nasty facilities before being sent back to Ecuador.
“I felt like the most wanted person in the world,” he said. “As if I had killed, kidnapped, or raped.” He says he saw dozens of other immigrants suffering a similar fate.
With 11 other deported immigrants, R.A. has filed a class-action lawsuit alleging that the courthouse arrests deprive them of their due process rights. Getting their day in court was the one thing they had always been able to count on. Back in Ecuador, R.A. is trying to keep out of sight, knowing that the same people who caused him to fear for his safety—and were the reason he fled to America in the first place—are still there. Read Frannie and Mónica’s disturbing report below.
—Joe Nocera
The Battle Cry of Erika Kirk |
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“You have no idea the fire that you have ignited within this wife. The cries of this widow will echo around the world like a battle cry,” said Erika Kirk, the widow of Charlie Kirk, less than 48 hours after her husband’s assassination. As Kat Rosenfield observes, her vow to carry on his mission isn’t opportunism—it’s a distinctly American resilience that turns grief into heroism. | | |
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How the DSA Became the Democrats’ Tea Party |
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Is Zohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist nominee for New York City mayor, the future of his party? That’s what moderate Democrats across the country fear, and what his allies in the Democratic Socialists of America are trying to bring about. Olivia Reingold takes a deep dive into the DSA’s electoral strategy—and how Mamdani has convinced erstwhile centrists like New York governor Kathy Hochul to embrace him. | | |
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Why Gen Z Hates Work |
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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Gen Z’s unemployment rate is more than double the national rate. So why aren’t the kids working? Maya Sulkin spoke to Zoomers who grew up watching influencers and came into the workforce in an “Instagram-induced delusion.” | | |
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Understanding Tyler Robinson’s Motives |
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What really drove Charlie Kirk’s alleged assassin? Josh Code spoke to Andy Ngo, an independent reporter who has covered the far left for years, about the meanings of the messages engraved on the bullet casings, the unseen forces lurking in obscure internet subcultures, and the thin line between nihilistic irony and violent extremism. | | |
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