TENS OF THOUSANDS IN DANGER AT U.S. DETENTION CENTERS
All Adrian Rodriguez Alcantara wanted was to make it out of immigration detention alive. He is a Cuban man seeking asylum in the United States. He was in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody at the Otay Mesa Detention Center when the coronavirus pandemic hit the country and eventually spread among the staff and detainees in the crowded facility.
Alcantara’s housing unit, which had over 100 people, was locked down as the virus spread in the facility. His desperation was palpable. He knew COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, was bad, but also learned it was much worse for medically vulnerable people, like him.
His fear was not unfounded. By now, we all know about the devastating death of Carlos Ernesto Escobar Mejia, who lost his life because ICE refused to release him while he still had a chance of surviving the deadly coronavirus.
Alcantara, who has HIV, is now a plaintiff in a classaction lawsuit filed by the ACLU Foundation of San Diego & Imperial Counties on April 21 demanding the release of medically vulnerable people from Otay Mesa, the site of the largest outbreak of coronavirus among ICE detention centers in the country.
While he was incarcerated at Otay Mesa, Alcantara constantly ran out of soap to wash his hands, something health experts say is key to prevent the spread of the virus, and there was not enough space in his eightperson cell to practice effective social distancing.
Alcantara and his partner came to the United States with dreams of being free to love and safe from harm. But seeking refuge in our country thrust them into a web of chaos. First, they were forced to wait six months in Tijuana before they could seek asylum. Then, they were locked up in detention centers along the border. They tried to get out, but their pleas went unanswered.
Alcantara’s experience is not unique. On any given day, hundreds of people are trapped inside the Otay Mesa facility, where more than 200 detained people have tested positive for the coronavirus as of Monday afternoon. Several people have been hospitalized in addition to the detainee who died.
As if by design, the facility is tailor-made for the spread of the virus. People live in crowded conditions. Common spaces and eating areas are not disinfected regularly. Access to soap is inconsistent and hand sanitizer is prohibited. Face masks have been used as bargaining chips in exchange for waivers of liability.
Detainees have described cells as having dried vomit and phlegm everywhere. And some former employees have even sued the private company that runs the detention center for its failure to protect them during this public health crisis.
Under these circumstances, continuing to detain people at Otay Mesa is dangerous and irresponsible. The ACLU and other organizations have previously documented ICE’S disregard for the health and safety of people the agency insists on detaining. The virus and COVID-19, the disease it causes, have acted as a catalyst — turning inhumane detention facilities into deathtraps for the most vulnerable.
To date, 705 of the 1,460 people tested for coronavirus in ICE custody nationwide have tested positive and at least two ICE employees have died. Without a change in course, it’s only a matter of time before more test positive and more people die. As this tragic scenario unfolds, we should remember that people would not be at risk of dying in ICE jails now if the federal government had not laid the groundwork for an inhumane immigration detention system before COVID-19. Civil immigration detention as we know it today has never been necessary and it is not normal.
In addition to the immediate release of medically vulnerable people, the ACLU’S lawsuit proposes a system for reducing the detention center’s overall population through the orderly release of people to their networks of care, where they can self-quarantine and practice social distancing. On April 30, the judge in our case ordered the release of more than 50 people whose age or medical conditions make them vulnerable to the coronavirus.
Our clients, Alcantara and his partner, were released from Otay on April 30. They are alive and free from the harm they faced inside. And thanks to the court order, dozens more will follow.
But tens of thousands of people remain in danger at detention centers across the country, and ICE has demonstrated it is willing to let people in its custody die during this pandemic. We must demand their release, and we must reimagine an immigration system that will never again needlessly imperil people’s lives.