It was a hoax that Haitians in Ohio were eating dogs and other pets; an untruth repeated by our president in his 2024 election campaign. Our Venezuelan immigrants escaped such accusations. But they were accused of “occupying” the city of Aurora by Trump, who said he came to Aurora to figure out what “the hell happened to Aurora.” It was all a result of a handful of Venezuelan gang members who had trashed a rental apartment building.

Even though I have lived in Aurora for a long time and my antennae are always up for such news, I did not know anything about the “Tren de Aragua” group. One reason for my disbelief of the Venezuelan gang story was that I expected Venezuelans to behave better than most Americans after having come from so far away.

It’s always been my belief that you try to be in good graces with your host — in this instance, Denver and Colorado — which have been exemplary hosts to the thousands of Venezuelans who have passed through our state. I tend to judge other immigrants as I judge myself — rather severely. I place myself in a place where little can be said to tarnish my character, be it my behavior in public, the language I use, as well as how I treat neighbors and friends. I also expect the same of my American hosts and friends. Additionally, statistics show that immigrants don’t commit crimes at higher rates than native Americans.

The Venezuelans I had encountered appeared to be gentle, friendly, respectful people who offered to clean my car’s windows; a service I usually rejected in the middle of the street. But I generally gave some change to mothers with little children in tow.

Another reason I didn’t think Tren de Aragua was dangerous was Trump’s general rhetoric. His every other word has for years been about how immigrants are such evildoers. I admire the Venezuelans’ and other immigrants’ courage for setting out to travel so far on foot. It takes courage to escape the grasp of dictators like Venezuela’s Nicholas Maduro. It takes a great deal of determination to cross the treacherous Darien gap.

I know many African-born Americans who live extraordinary lives as engineers, doctors and businessmen and whose children compete energetically with other American kids. Indeed, Trump’s own family is full of immigrants and children of immigrants. That he paints all immigrants with the same broad brush only makes one suspicious of his rhetoric.

Aurora was not going to be run over by a small band of thugs. Tren de Aragua unknowingly served fodder to Trump’s imagination that’s chock full of untruths. Tren de Aragua’s activity affected an apartment building; it did not affect the large majority of Aurora’s denizens that is composed of American-born Aurorans, and an immigrant population from over 130 countries who work hard to support their families and neighbors.

But Tren de Aragua did behave criminally, brutalizing other Venezuelans, and scaring neighbors, such as Cindy Romero, the woman who posted a viral video that sparked the Aurora controversy. Because I depicted the immigrants who come to America through Mexico as peace-loving folks seeking a better life, a better world, I was taken aback to learn that this group of thugs was living among other migrants. This meant that not all migrants are converted into good citizens just by crossing the Rio Grande. It was a minor shock, indeed, a re-education for me if you wish, to think that Trump, despite his hyperbolic pronouncements, had a tiny sliver of truth.

Not all immigrants — legal or otherwise are free of criminality. This I should have known. I pay close attention to local, national, and international news and l know that some Vietnamese, Korean and Russian mobsters plague their own communities. Tren de Aragua joins El Salvador’s MS-13 in my mind, except MS-13 began in Los Angeles among El Salvador immigrants.

Even as we reject groups like Tren de Aragua, we must remember that the majority of Venezuelans are good people who are here seeking a place to lay down their heads. It is despicable for gangs to harass and torture these sad souls who likely have very little to sustain them. I say this with the caveat that Biden’s administration should have done a better job in allowing a reduced, documented number of Venezuelans and other immigrants who qualified to stay in the United States.

Pius Kamau, M.D., a retired general surgeon, is president of the Aurora-based Africa America Higher Education Partnerships; co-founder of the Africa Enterprise Group and an activist for minority students ‘STEM education. He is a National Public Radio commentator, a Huffington Post blogger, a past columnist for Denver dailies and is featured on the podcast, “Never Again.”