People protest conditions of immigration detainees
‘People were somber and very worried because children are being put in unconscionable conditions’
More than 100 people rallied in front of Yuba County Superior Court Friday evening to protest conditions of immigrants held in detention centers.
Organized by Sacramento-area advocacy group Norcal Resist, protestors held signs reading “families belong together,” “stop inhumane conditions,” and “abolish ICE.” Members of civic group Indivisible Colusa joined the protest at the courthouse, which shares a complex with the Yuba County Jail – which is now the only facility in the state to hold a contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement for housing immigration detainees.
The Yuba County Sheriff’s Of
fice has had a contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement since the 1990s, which has generated about $5 million in revenue annually in recent years, according to Appealdemocrat archives. If the jail continues with its average of 182 ICE detainees each day, the contract could generate around $6.5 million per year. The department has said in past interviews with the Appeal-democrat that the revenue from the contract is critical to department operations.
Jennifer Roberts, a co-leader of Indivisible Colusa, said she’s attended many protests and rallies the past two years with several having an optimistic tone. This demonstration, she said, was different.
“At this one, people were somber and very worried because children are being put in unconscionable conditions,” Roberts said Monday. “A report from Customs and Border Patrol said conditions were unsafe and unsanitary and dangerous. When the government is saying that itself, it’s pretty shocking.”
The report Roberts was referencing was published earlier this month by investigators from the Department of Homeland Security, which outlined “dangerous” overcrowding and prolonged detention in the Rio Grande Valley, unsanitary conditions (many detainees had no access to showers and limited access to change of clothes) and were not fed hot meals as required by federal standards. Readers can find the report in full here: https://tinyurl.com/ y224es6y.
The protest was one of hundreds held across the country the same evening and local time under the name “Lights for Liberty.” Sponsors for the event included immigration advocacy groups, religious unions, lawyers’ associations and other coalitions, according to the event’s website.
Protestors chanted and listened to speakers for about an hour and a half before walking around the entire complex at Fifth Street in Marysville holding electric candles, Roberts said.
“One local event may not seem to have a lot of impact but cumulatively, it really does add up and really does change public opinion,” Roberts said. “I guess I would like (people) to remember that undocumented immigrants are all around us, in the rural agricultural community in particular. They are coworkers, neighbors, friends, families, students, employees, our customers … It’s easy for people to have a negative stance about the abstract idea of immigrants but if you remember we’re talking about people all around us, maybe then it’s easier to be more compassionate.”