By Viviane Faver
A press conference, “Haitian Voice United: Shut Down Berks,” was held today to discuss the situation of Haitian families in ICE detention centers in Berks County, PA. Coronavirus is spreading like wildfire; the lives of the families are at significant risk.
Among the three detention centers in the USA, this is the only one that is not privately owned, unlike the two in Texas. That is one of the reasons Governor Tom Wolf is discussing the possibility of ending it with an emergency order.
According to spokesman Steve Paul, the county makes over $1.3 million in profit by renting the building to ICE: “The people that work in the US immigration custom enforcement essentially just rent the facility to imprison people. The majority of the families indoors are facing threats of family separation and indefinite detention and deportation. That’s the reason we are here. “
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On June 26th, a federal judge ordered ICE to release children who stay in the detention center for more than 20 days. The deadline to release the children was supposed to be July 17th.
According to Steve Paul, however, there is suspicion about if the order will be fulfilled. “It is not the first time there’s been an order or a policy to stop family separation. A lot of the advocates from the Shutdown Berk Coalition, which reached out to us and let us know about what’s happening, are very concerned that ICE will once again disregard the judge order.”
During the press conference, the volunteers read letters written by families who are still in detention. Poor hygiene, mistreatment, and recent complaints of strangers going to the center to videotape them without consent were some of the claims mentioned.
What is Happening Now
According to Adriana Torres-García, coordinator for the Free Migration Project and member of the Shut Down Berks Coalition, there are five families in jail, most of them Haitian. Despite Judge Gee’s order to release families, at least one more has been brought into the facility. ICE is continuing to put everyone in danger of contracting COVID-19.
There is ongoing litigation on several parts of this case: licensing and PA DHS failing to protect families against COVID-19. “They are both at different points; for the latter, we are still reviewing options and will likely appeal. In terms of the Coalition’s efforts, we are continuing to pressure Governor Wolf to issue an ERO immediately to close down the family jail. He has the power to do this, as it’s laid out in this memo. We are also demanding that his administration works with the Berks County Commissioners to transform the facility into a place that serves the community. During COVID-19, we have pressured even harder, as these families are being put in the most vulnerable position. Following Judge Gee’s decision, we began planning to show up for the families at the detention center. We are not confident that ICE will release the families. It is more likely is that they will use this as an opportunity to present parents with the choice of family separation or detention”, concludes Adriana Torres-Garcia.
For those who want to follow up with them, they will be there on the 17th and welcome community members to join us.
