Immigration detainees declare hunger strike
Representative says Yuba County Jail ranks among worst facilities
Citing 19-hour lockdowns and inadequate access to healthcare, 46 Yuba County Jail immigration detainees are on day three of a hunger strike.
The strike began Sunday to protest jail conditions, according to activist groups, and is expected to last at least a week.
Autumn Gonzalez, a Yuba City native who now lives in Sacramento, is part of the Norcal Resist group, which has been communicating on behalf of detainees. In speaking to detainees – many of whom have been moved to three or four different locations – activists say they have learned that some facilities are better than others.
Yuba County Jail ranks among the worst, she said.
“A lot of people say Yuba is the worst experience they’ve had,” Gonzalez said. “It’s really hard on people emotionally and mentally.”
The Yuba County Sheriff’s Office 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 Appeal-democrat 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 Appealdemocrat that the revenue from the contract is critical to depart-
ment operations.
The contract only requires the jail be a housing facility and the department maintains that it does not engage in undocumented enforcement or transportation. Detainees housed at the jail are typically awaiting immigration proceedings in San Francisco.
Gonzalez said some detainees have had some kind of contact with the criminal justice system and may be pending criminal charges or have already served sentences. Others are simply civil detainees awaiting administrative proceedings. This is the third time Yuba County Jail immigration detainees have taken part in a hunger strike, she said.
Detainees have told activists that deficiencies include unsanitary conditions, insufficient programming, lack of access to fresh air and exercise, poor medical, mental health and dental treatment, limited visitation and prolonged lockdowns – some have reported up to 23 hours.
Their requests include separate housing from county inmates; improved medical, mental health and dental care; ending punitive conditions; ending of prolonged daily lockdowns; offering the same programming inmates receive; providing regular access to exercise; offering translators; addressing maintenance issues in a timely manner; addressing unsanitary conditions; providing for an independent oversight committee with unannounced visits; and following ICE guidelines for grievance procedures. Gonzalez said activists are also asking that detainees placed on administrative holds be given alternatives to detention, like ankle monitors or bail.
Katie Finch, a Yuba County public defender, attended a press conference announcing the hunger strike at Sacramento County Jail on Sunday and spoke on behalf of a Sacramento activist group she is part of.
“We believe that no human is illegal and no human who enters a jail facility loses their humanity,” Finch said Sunday. “These are community members being civilly detained for immigration concerns, not even public safety concerns, so I’m not sure how we justify what’s being done to these people.”
Leslie Carbah, spokeswoman for the Yuba County Sheriff’s Office, confirmed that 46 out of 177 ICE detainees began refusing meals Sunday, though administration doesn’t yet consider it a hunger strike.
“We are aware and for their safety, they are being closely monitored by jail staff and medical, and ICE is aware,” Carbah wrote in an email Monday. “Policies and protocols outlined for this type of situation are being followed as required.”
She referred the Appealdemocrat to ICE Public Affairs – which could not be reached in time for comment – for details on policies.
Activists also cited an amended consent decree ordering Yuba County Jail to improve its conditions as proof of insufficient care. The agreement, which was reached in August and stems from a 1976 lawsuit, orders that the jail make a number of specific changes including limitations on safety cell placement, improved detoxification procedures, the creation of step-down cells for suicidal prisoners, licensed psychiatric staff on-site 24/7, and other improved programming, according to Appeal-democrat archives.
Ruth Ibarra, a Sacramento activist who also spoke at the press conference, encouraged community members to support the strike by reaching out to sheriff’s office and jail staff and communicating demands for improved care.
“ICE is a failed institution and has created perverse incentives for struggling communities like Yuba County to house civil detainees in substandard conditions in order to reap financial benefits,” Ibarra said.
The Yuba County hunger strike is running concurrent to one taking place in El Paso, Texas, where detainees are protesting “rampant verbal abuse and threats of deportation from guards,” the Washington Post reported. ICE officials confirmed that jail staff in El Paso was force-feeding nine detainees from Punjab, India, some who have endured the strike for more than 40 days.