Our latest press releases on important news and events relating to immigration detention in the United States
For media inquiries contact: media@detentionwatchnetwork.org
In response to Donald Trump returning to the White House, Silky Shah, Executive Director of Detention Watch Network offered the following statement:
Eloy, Arizona — Today, Detention Watch Network, Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project, and Trans Queer Pueblo released an ‘Anthology of Abuse’ on the Eloy Detention Center (Eloy) in Eloy, Arizona. Eloy has gained notoriety as the "deadliest immigration detention center in the U.S.," with at least 16 reported deaths, including five suicides. The report calls for the release of people detained and the permanent closure of the facility immediately.
Washington, DC – Today, a delegation of immigrant justice advocates and people who have experienced immigration detention representing Arizona, California, Louisiana, New Mexico, Virginia and Pennsylvania will meet with their elected officials and key members of Congress to discuss the alarming abuses in immigration detention, negative impact of the detention and immigration enforcement system on local communities, and make the following demands:
Los Angeles, CA – Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is seeking to expand immigration detention capacity in the West with the potential to impact Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Texas and New Mexico. Posted in August, ICE’s West Coast Multi-State Request for Information (RFI), is seeking detention capacity of 850 to 950 additional detention beds within a two hour drive for each of the following ICE field office locations: Phoenix, El Paso, Seattle, and San Francisco.
Washington, DC – Today, 221 immigrant justice organizations sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, urging the administration to halt Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) immigration detention expansion efforts, while restoring free phone access to people in detention, and protecting the basic rights of the people in the agency’s custody.
Washington, DC – Last week reports began emerging of a troubling trend in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention. People detained in 16 facilities from across the country reported losing free phone access – a critical lifeline for the mental health of a person in detention to stay connected with their loved ones and prepare for their immigration case. In a haphazard rollout and without notice, ICE has confirmed it will be ending this program at all facilities.
Dilley, Texas – Yesterday, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced that the South Texas Family Detention Center in Dilley, Texas, commonly referred to as “Dilley,” will close. Advocates who have long called out the rampant abuse at Dilley are frustrated that the motive to close Dilley is to expand detention elsewhere. The administration plans to increase immigration detention by an estimated 1,600 detention beds. Let us be clear: Whenever people are in ICE custody, lives are in jeopardy.
Washington, DC – In response to Biden’s executive order that, when triggered, will temporarily shut down the Southern border to people seeking asylum, Silky Shah, Executive Director of Detention Watch Network, issued the following statement:
Atlanta, Georgia - In a display of unity, over 100 people from across the county marched and rallied in downtown Atlanta demanding dignity and respect for communities targeted by racialized enforcement practices across the state, country, and globe. The event, led by Detention Watch Network and local members and partners, demanded the closure of all detention centers including the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia. Just one week ago, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reported the death of a 44-year-old man in their custody at Stewart.
Washington, DC – A new book, Unbuild Walls: Why Immigrant Justice Needs Abolition, by Silky Shah, Executive Director of Detention Watch Network, dives into US immigration policy and its relationship to mass incarceration, from the last 40 years to the present, showing how the prison-industrial complex and immigration enforcement are intertwined systems of repression.
