Pressroom

Washington, DC — In response to Trump’s hate-filled speech today on immigration, Silky Shah, Executive Director of Detention Watch Network issued the following statement: “Today, Trump furthered his manufactured crisis at the border narrative driven by white nationalism and race based fear-mongering. In his speech, Trump previewed two devastating shifts: the unraveling of the asylum system and a massive ramp up of indefinite immigration detention in the form of tent cities. The scope of Trump’s immigrant detention system is already unprecedented. With nearly 44,000 immigrants being held daily…

Read the Amicus Brief Washington, DC – As a caravan of thousands of people seeking asylum approaches the United States, Attorney General Jeff Sessions is preparing to make a move that would allow him to keep any asylum seeker detained indefinitely. Today, immigrant rights advocacy groups and community leaders across the country joined to condemn Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ latest power grab to further take away the power of immigration judges, leaving the decision of whether certain immigrants, such as asylum seekers, should be released from detention solely to Immigration and Customs…

Washington, DC — Today, Detention Watch Network launched a new campaign, #CommunitiesNotCages, aimed at halting the massive expansion of the immigration detention system. With nearly 44,000 immigrants being held daily in a network of over 200 detention centers across the country, the #CommunitiesNotCages campaign amplifies the longstanding local organizing of Detention Watch Network members and advocates across the country, while building a nationally coordinated strategy to stop the expansion and ultimately abolish immigration detention in its entirety. “This campaign is led by our members…

Seattle, WA — NWDC Resistance, Detention Watch Network, and the Coalition of Anti-Racist Whites filed a lawsuit on Tuesday, October 23rd asking the federal court in the Western District of Washington to stop Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) unconstitutional policy of retaliating against undocumented immigrants engaged in First Amendment-protected advocacy in support of immigrants’ rights. ICE, and its parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security, has emerged as one of the largest law enforcement agencies in the United States. Its targeting of activists is anti-democratic and…

Washington, DC — Today it was announced that Mike Pompeo unilaterally approved the transfer of State Department funds to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to increase funding for Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda. Mary Small, Policy Director of Detention Watch Network, issued the following statement: “This administration will stop at nothing to push their anti-immigrant agenda forward, including grabbing money from critical resources like disaster preparation and response efforts, and now, responding to humanitarian crises. This is the second time this year that DHS has used massive…

Stockton, California — Today, immigrant rights activists, community leaders and people who have been directly affected by the immigrant detention system gathered for a rally and press conference to call attention to the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to jail 1,600 immigrants. The agreement was made public in June, amidst Trump’s manufactured crisis over family separation to make the case for immigration detention expansion. The expansion into BOP facilities is concentrated in five prisons in California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona and Texas. As…

Washington, DC — Yesterday, Congress reached a budget deal to fund the federal government through December 7, avoiding a shutdown. Noticeably absent from the continuing resolution package was a last minute request by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), known as an ‘anomaly,’ to increase funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to further expand the immigration detention system. Gabriela Benitez, Senior Organizer of Detention Watch Network issued the following statement: “ICE’s anomaly request was the latest deceptive practice by the fraught agency to advance Trump’s hate…

Washington, DC — Immigrants, faith leaders and advocates from the #DefundHate coalition will gather in the offices of Senator Schumer and Senator Shelby to deliver over 60,000 signatures collected by CREDO, AFSC, and members of the coalition calling for Congress to stop funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). With chants, prayers and stories from those who have been harmed by ICE, participants will call on the Senate to take action. The event will take place on Tuesday, September 11 at 11:00 am in the Senators’ offices. “It is absolutely unacceptable that ICE is seeking more…

One-hundred and seventy five immigrant and civil rights organizations sent a letter today to congressional appropriators urging them to reject the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) latest request for new funding to further expand the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention system. “Over the past two years DHS has persistently overspent its detention budget, confident that Congress will permit regular infusions of funds through reprogramming and transfers,” the letter, signed by the National Immigrant Justice Center, Detention Watch Network and other local, regional, and…

Washington, DC — Yesterday, the House Appropriations Committee voted on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)’s Fiscal Year 2019 Bill. The bill would give DHS $5 billion for a harmful, unnecessary border wall, 370 CBP officers, 400 NEW ICE personnel to continue arresting and jailing families within the United States, funds for the incarceration of 44,000 immigrants and the expansion of detention camps. The committee voted along party lines, with all Democrats voting against the bill and Republicans voting to tear more families apart, cage children and put parents behind bars, continue to…

Washington, DC — The #DefundHate Coalition recommends that the House Appropriations Committee vote NO next week on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) FY19 appropriations bill that was introduced on Thursday by the Subcommittee on Homeland Security of the House Appropriations Committee. This measure includes increased funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to target, incarcerate, and tear families apart, and $5 billion to build 200 miles of new and harmful border walls. The #DefundHate coalition released the following statements…

Lumpkin, Georgia — Immigrant rights organizations, El Refugio Ministry, Georgia Detention Watch, Project South, Southern Poverty Law Center and Detention Watch Network are demanding an immediate investigation and public release of the findings of the death of Efrain Romero De La Rosa. De La Rosa, 40, originally from Puebla, Mexico, died on July 10th after being in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody at the Stewart Detention Center operated by the notorious private prison company, CoreCivic, in Georgia. ICE is reporting the death as an apparent suicide. “The death of De La Rosa is…

Washington, D.C. — The National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) and Detention Watch Network welcome today’s report from the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General (OIG), holding Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) accountable for its failed detention inspections system. One ICE employee told OIG investigators it is “very, very, very difficult to fail” inspections, and another called the inspections “useless.” The report, titled "ICE's Inspections and Monitoring of Detention Facilities Do Not Lead to Sustained Compliance or Systemic Improvements," mirrors many…

“Today’s decision by the Supreme Court was a complete failure to this country’s democracy. We are living in a moment where everyone is challenged to defend and uphold democratic values, and instead the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Muslim ban flies in the face of these ideals and further emboldens Trump’s anti-immigrant and Islamophobic agenda. We denounce today’s decision and Trump’s relentless attacks against the immigrant community, from the Muslim ban to family separation to the expansion of abusive and deadly immigrant detention. Today’s decision will be met with a growing…

Los Angeles, California — In a week dominated by news of cruel family separation and an executive order that double downs on Trump’s anti-immigrant and racist agenda by increasing the widely denounced policy of family detention, immigrant rights advocates look to amplify a key driver of Trump’s evil practices: incarceration. “Trump created the crisis at the border with the primary goal to ruthlessly lock up as many people as possible and to make the case for immigrant detention expansion,” said Maru Mora Villalpando with the NWDC Resistance. “And now with the executive order combined with the…

Washington, DC – Poor medical treatment contributed to more than half the deaths reported by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during a 16-month period, Human Rights Watch, the American Civil Liberties Union, Detention Watch Network, and National Immigrant Justice Center said in a report released today. Based on the analysis of independent medical experts, the 72-page report, “ Code Red: The Fatal Consequences of Dangerously Substandard Medical Care in Immigration Detention,” examines the 15 “Detainee Death Reviews” ICE released from December 2015 through April 2017. ICE has yet to…

Washington, DC — In response to Trump’s executive order, Danny Cendejas, Organizing Director of Detention Watch Network issued the following statement: “This is not an about face for Trump. Trump created the crisis at the border with the primary goal to ruthlessly lock up as many people as possible and to make the case for immigrant detention expansion. With today’s executive order signing, Trump is doubling down on his anti-immigrant, nativist agenda by increasing the widely denounced policy of family detention, that puts women and children behind bars, exacerbating trauma and stripping…

Albuquerque, New Mexico — Immigrant rights organizations, including the Detained Migrant Solidarity Committee, National Immigrant Justice Center, NM Comunidades en Accion y de Fe (CAFé) and Detention Watch Network are demanding an immediate investigation and public release of the findings of the death of Roxsana Hernandez. Roxsana, 33, died on May 25th after being in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody at the Cibola County Detention Center in New Mexico where she was detained in the transgender unit. “The death of Roxsana, a young woman, is yet another infuriating tragedy at the…

Civil society organizations across the country are calling on congressional appropriators to hold U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) accountable for violations of congressionally imposed transparency obligations in the ever-expanding immigration detention system. In March, as Congress passed its spending bill for fiscal year 2018, it placed new public reporting obligations on ICE regarding its detention system. Ten immigrant and civil rights organizations formally highlighted these new obligations in a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and acting…

Washington, DC — Detention Watch Network and La ColectiVA demand the release of Alejandra Pablos, immigrant rights and reproductive rights activist, who has spent over a month in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention and is scheduled to appear in front of an immigration judge for a bond hearing on Thursday in Arizona. Pablos was detained by ICE after a scheduled check-in with ICE’s Tucson office. Pablos was taken to the Eloy Detention Center, one of the deadliest detention centers in the country, as a clear form of retaliation by ICE after participating in a peaceful immigrant…

Memphis, TN — Today, Comunidades Unidas en Una Voz, Detention Watch Network, and the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition called on the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency to immediately release Manuel Duran, a well-known Spanish language journalist in Memphis. Manuel was arrested on April 3rd by the Memphis Police Department while he was conducting his work as a reporter and covering an immigrant detention protest held by local groups outside of the county jail. CUUV, DWN, TIRRC and thousands of people launched a campaign to urge MPD to drop all charges and for…

Washington, DC — After months of negotiations, today, the House of Representatives paved the path for a proposal to fund the federal government to the tune of $1.3 trillion with the Senate set to vote on it ahead of tomorrow’s midnight deadline. As it relates to immigration, the funding bill includes money for: $14.018 billion for Customs and Border Protection (CBP, $1.831 billion more than fiscal year 2017 $7.076 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), $641 million more than fiscal year 2017. $370 million of this increase is for “Custody Operations,” the account that funds…

Washington, DC — Today’s release of a congressional letter led by Representatives Gutiérrez, Espaillat and Grijalva is the latest addition to a growing demand from constituents, advocates and Members of Congress for significant cuts in funding to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). “The massive amount of engagement over the appropriations process to cut funding for ICE and CBP has reached a fever pitch. It shows the pure outrage over Trump’s hate-fueled anti-immigrant agenda and the resolve to fight it,” said Mary Small, Policy Director of…

Washington, DC — Today, Tuesday March 13, immigrant activists will deliver over 130,000 petition signatures gathered by American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), CREDO, Detention Watch Network (DWN) and MoveOn to demand that Members of Congress #DefundHate by publicly calling for significant cuts in funding to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), and fight against any funding bill which wastes taxpayer dollars on this unaccountable and abusive immigration enforcement system. Activists delivered the petitions to lead appropriators and Congressional…

Miami, FL — Immigrant rights organizations, including Florida Immigrant Coalition, Southern Poverty Law Center and Detention Watch Network, are demanding an immediate investigation and public release of the findings on the death of Luis Ramirez-Marcano. Cuban immigrant Ramirez-Marcano, 59, died on February 19 while in the custody of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after being detained at the Krome Detention Center in Florida. “We demand to know the circumstances that led to the deaths of these detainees,” said Maria Rodriguez, Executive Director of Florida Immigrant Coalition. “We…