Their deaths were politicized even before their lives were eulogized.

This was my immediate thought as I stared at the photo of the Salvadoran father and his toddler daughter, their bodies washed up, face down, on the bank of the Rio Grande River. The girl’s tiny body was still tucked into her father’s shirt, her only life preserver as they attempted to cross the river to Brownsville, Texas.

The deceased Salvadoran migrant’s name is Oscar Alberto Martinez Ramirez. His nearly 2-year-old daughter’s name is Valeria. As you may know by now, the man’s wife, Tania, told Mexican authorities she watched her husband and daughter disappear in the river’s violent current. Ramirez, 25, was frustrated because his family was unable to present themselves to U.S. authorities to request asylum.

Not that it would have worked for sure. But he felt he had to try.

What he attempted to do is illegal in our country. Ask any supporter of a promised border wall and stricter immigration policies. I don’t condone what the father tried to do to wrongfully enter the United States, but I understand it.

Frustration and desperation can lead to illegal immigration. This cold, sobering fact can’t escape our country’s white-hot political climate, which turns even the most sorrowful image into an immediate tool for propaganda.

Let’s start with President Donald Trump, who instinctively and shamelessly blamed the Democrats for the situation leading to the father and daughter’s deaths. Most of us aren’t much better. Other Republicans blamed Democrats. Democrats blamed Republicans. Conservatives blamed liberals. Liberals blamed conservatives. You get my point.

The only person who accepted any accountability for the two deaths was a man whose name I never knew until Monday. Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, who took office just a month ago, said his country is to blame. Period.

“We can blame any other country, but what about our blame?” he told the BBC. “What country did they flee? Did they flee the United States? They fled El Salvador, they fled our country. It is our fault.”

Whether or not his words came from the bottom of his heart or the top of a teleprompter, I found them refreshing. And mournful, which is more than I can say for anyone who used that haunting photo to justify or further their political agenda.

“People don’t flee their homes because they want to, people flee their homes because they feel they have to,” Bukele said.

This is obviously true, but it does nothing to address our humanitarian crisis — yes, it’s a crisis — along our southern border as thousands of illegal immigrants continue to enter the U.S. by any means necessary. And, yes, I view this also as a national security crisis.

Not every migrant trying to illegally enter our country is a desperate father with an innocent toddler after an arduous and dangerous 1,500-mile journey from their homeland. And not every migrant is attempting to seek legal asylum. I understand this.

I’m sure there also are dangerous people sneaking into the U.S. with criminal intentions. This thought alone strikes fear into the hearts of millions of Americans who are in favor of the border wall that President Trump has promised since 2015.

“And Mexico will pay for it!” Trump said again and again at his rallies.

This campaign promise was presidential politics in action. A brilliant strategy to secure votes using fear and assurance. And it may work again on the very same voters four years later. Sometimes I think Americans’ gullibility is our most dangerous national security threat.

Extreme tribalism — us against them regarding everything — is now normalized in our country. Either we’re members of a certain tribe of thought, values and beliefs, or we’re not. We’re expected to adopt or adapt to others’ opinions on a daily basis. And if we don’t, we’re now one of “them.”

How far should we take this attitude?

For example, if I agree with your stance about illegal immigration, would it end there? Of course not. You’d also want to sell me your viewpoint on the need for a border wall, mass deportations, and the lack of compassion for anyone who dies while trying to enter our country. “Illegal is illegal,” right?

I simply can’t agree on this simpleton black-and-white viewpoint, knowing damn well all the gray-colored nuances regarding this complex issue. For instance, WWJD? What would Jesus do in this situation? More to the point, what would Jesus’ followers do?

I don’t consider myself a Christian, so I don’t feel compelled to view this topic through Jesus’ words or biblical scripture. Yet, while staring at the photo, I wondered how Christians are reconciling this conundrum in their heart or soul.

Jesus would surely accept and embrace these desperate migrants. Can we at least agree on this? However, as I’ve been told by Christians who support a border wall, the Bible preaches to obey the laws of the land. Which stance you take likely says more about you politically than it does spiritually.

Maybe this is how millions of Americans can stare at this photo through political blinders, first thinking about the controversial issue, and then about the tragic deaths. I’m not casting judgment. I’m casting a net to see who confesses to doing this.

This photo is the latest, and the saddest, illustration how we struggle to find a common ground of understanding amid the violent currents of our political differences. So we instinctively retreat to our islands of extreme tribalism.

This unforgettable photo should bond us on some primal level that transcends politics.

I’m asking you to look at it again. Not as a Democrat or Republican. Not as a liberal or conservative. Not as a Trump supporter or critic. But as a human being. Nothing more. Nothing less.

If only in our mind, let’s eulogize their lives before we politicize their deaths.