I’ve lived in Bend almost my whole life. Until now, I’ve focused on school and helping in my family’s business, Tortilleria Reyes. But now I know I have to do more.

I can’t stay quiet while federal agents rip immigrant families apart, and while certain politicians try to divide us all based on race.

I can’t stay quiet while I hear about children locked up in kennel-like cages, forced to sleep on concrete floors.

That’s some of what Sen. Jeff Merkley uncovered in early June when he traveled to Brownsville, Texas, where the Trump administration is forcibly separating immigrant children from parents who are seeking protection in the United States. I want to thank Sen. Merkley for defending our values as Oregonians and our hope for a prosperous, safe future for all of us. He’s showing real leadership.

I’m calling on Rep. Greg Walden to demonstrate this kind of leadership, too. It’s time to show you’re on the side of all of us in Central Oregon — whether we’re white, black or brown — and that you share the values we stand for.

I come from a Mexican immigrant family — and I’m proud of who we are.

My parents built our business customer by customer, dollar by dollar. They started selling tortillas — they didn’t have capital for more than that. Then they added candies and drinks to the inventory. As their customer base grew, they expanded into a bakery. About 16 years ago, we added a restaurant. It’s received great reviews.

The business has kept my family more than occupied over the years. We focus on keeping it afloat and growing.

That growth has meant we’ve been able to employ dozens of people over the years, and contribute to our local economy. We aren’t rich, but we help make Bend more prosperous for everyone.

We’re also a community hub, a place where people connect and share news. When something bad happens to someone here, we’re all affected. I’ve had relatives removed from their families and deported. It’s a real blow — emotionally, financially, in just about every way you can imagine.

People are on edge now. That’s not good for Bend, and it’s not good for my family’s business. Frankly, we’ve lost customers recently, and the Latino business sector here is losing some people instead of growing like it should.

More fear, less community trust, shrinking businesses. That doesn’t help any of us in Bend, immigrant or Oregon-born, white, Mexican or black.

It doesn’t have to be this way. I’ve seen the challenges my parents faced, the sacrifices they made to grow their business — and the support they’ve received from people of all walks of life in Bend. And I believe we can unite in the same way to keep families together and remove obstacles to citizenship for them.

My family and I are Rep. Walden’s constituents, and I hope he cares about us, all of us, no matter our race or where we were born. Here are some ways Rep. Walden can show he cares.

He should vote against any bill that allows federal agents to separate families and lock children up, that makes it harder for people to seek asylum, or puts more limits on how many people can apply for green cards.

He should say no to more walls and funding for tactics like ripping kids from their mothers’ arms, and not one more penny for ICE, the federal agency that’s running rampant in neighborhoods and businesses.

Finally, he should support removing obstacles to citizenship for immigrants in our communities. We need to cut that red tape, not tie people up in more of it. That will make us all stronger.

I hope Rep. Walden remembers how much we can accomplish — and have accomplished — when people of all races stand together for freedom and civil rights. It’s time to do the right thing.

— Victor Reyes lives in Bend.