“compiled: Elmili TK” | July 16, 2025
A Trump 2024 flag fluttered outside a quiet suburban home in California as federal agents led Arpineh Masihi away in handcuffs. Her four children watched from the front door. Her husband, Arthu Sahakyan, didn’t flinch—not even after she was gone.
Masihi, a 38-year-old Iranian-born refugee who’s lived in the U.S. since she was three, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on June 30 over a petty theft charge dating back 15 years. The arrest—based on an offense reportedly involving less than $200—comes amid a wave of federal detentions targeting Iranian nationals after recent U.S. airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.
But what made this case resonate far beyond the family’s street was the flag still flying over their home—and the man who refused to take it down.
A Family Divided by Allegiance
Despite the traumatic arrest of his wife, Sahakyan has stood firm in his support for Donald Trump. “I’m still supporting [Trump],” he told Fox 11 Los Angeles, as quoted by The Independent. “Even though my friends say, ‘take the flag down, you’re going through a lot.’ I’m like, no. The flag stands.”
That loyalty, in the face of deep personal cost, has sparked both sympathy and bewilderment online and within his community.
The red, white, and blue Trump flag remains a visual contradiction—flying above a household now fractured by the very policies Sahakyan defends. It’s a quiet, unwavering protest of a different kind: not against power, but in service of it.
Politics Meets Policy
Masihi’s arrest is part of a broader ICE operation focusing on Iranian nationals, a campaign that intensified after the U.S. military struck several Iranian nuclear sites on June 22. Federal authorities cite rising concerns over Iranian sleeper cells and potential domestic threats. The Department of Homeland Security has warned of a “heightened threat environment,” especially around national holidays like the Fourth of July.
While Sahakyan sees the crackdown as a necessary act of national protection, for his family, the consequences are painfully personal. Surveillance footage reportedly shows Masihi embracing her children before being taken away. Her green card had been revoked years earlier, but she remained in the U.S. raising her family—until federal agents came to the door.
More Than One Story
Masihi’s detention is far from an isolated incident. Dozens of legally residing Iranians have been taken into custody in recent weeks. Many, like her, had minor or non-violent offenses on their record—some none at all.
According to data cited by The Independent, of the over 56,000 immigrants now in ICE custody, nearly half have no criminal record. Less than a third have been convicted of a crime. Civil rights advocates argue the sweeps blur the line between national security and racial profiling.
Sahakyan, however, sees it differently. “Trump is not trying to do anything bad,” he told reporters. “He wants the best for the country.”
The Cost of Belief
The image of Sahakyan—standing in the doorway with his children, the flag above them—is now emblematic of the deeper contradictions playing out across America. For some, it’s a story of ideological loyalty. For others, it’s about the human toll of policies written far from the homes they impact.
While the rhetoric surrounding immigration grows sharper, families like the Sahakyans are caught in the middle—believing in the promise of America, even as that promise seems to turn its back on them.
And still, the flag waves.
