There were many things that I wanted us to create when we built the Lookout Eugene-Springfield newsroom.

One was a culture of saying: “Yes.”

Maybe it was because I’ve been told “no” so much in my career that I believe if someone has a good idea, we need to do everything we can to say “yes.”

And when Grace Chinowsky and Isaac Wasserman told me they thought we needed to travel to Mexico to report a story, I wanted to say “yes.” Even if I didn’t say it at first.

There were a lot of questions that needed answers before we could agree, but the most important was: Is this a story that is important for our community and are we the right people to tell it?

Misael and Jasmine walk through the Tula ruins, Feb. 9, 2026. “I was happy and content having my daughter with me,” Misael said. “In a way, it helped soften the blow of arriving here and kept me from feeling quite so lonely. Of course, I have my mother and siblings here, but it’s just not the same.”

It was. And we were.

We have received many emails during the past 15 months regarding the actions of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  Readers wanted to understand what was happening, who it was happening to, and why.

What happened to people who were detained?  Where did they go?

Sadly, we don’t know the answers to those questions for everyone detained by ICE in Lane County since the start of last year.

But we had an opportunity to tell the story of what that experience is like, for both the person detained and then deported, but also for the family left behind.

This story is important not just to one family, but to every family of immigrants and every person who knows and cares for our immigrant community.

The story of Misael Garcia Lopez, his daughter Jasmine and their family is a story shared by thousands of people who have been separated and sent to countries they barely know.

There will be parts of this story that might make you uncomfortable. It might make you angry. 

It should.

We want everyone to read this story.  While it is local, it transcends Eugene, Lane County, and even Oregon.  It’s why we had the story translated into Spanish and made it free for everyone. Feel free to share the story with people you think need to see it.

Reporting like this takes time and resources. It meant Grace had to hand off some of her regular duties covering the city of Eugene to other reporters.  We used freelance photographers for protest coverage since Isaac was more than 2,000 miles away.

We are able to do this kind of work because of our members and our marketing partners. This was not a cheap story to tell, but this is the type of journalism Lookout Eugene-Springfield is committed to. 

If you are not a member, but believe in independent, nonpartisan journalism that tells stories that are important to our community, then become a member today.

If you are already a Lookout member, thank you. If you are not, join today and support robust, independent local journalism.

SUPPORT JOURNALISM WITH IMPACT

Lookout Eugene-Springfield believes in reporting stories that matter to the community. These are the impactful stories that help readers understand the news of the moment. You can support this kind of journalism by becoming a Lookout member. If you would like to make a contribution that directly supports journalism like this, you can make a tax-free donation through GiveButter to support our work.

Dann Miller is the executive editor of Lookout Eugene-Springfield, bringing decades of leadership experience in both traditional and digital newsrooms.