As Omicron Spreads in ICE Detention, Advocates Call for Action
Immigrants in detention facilities throughout the United States are facing a rapid increase in COVID-19 infections as the Omicron variant spreads throughout the country and rips through congregate settings. Immigrants held in detention facilities run by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have experienced an increased risk of COVID-19 throughout the pandemic, with an infection rate three times as high as the overall US infection rate, with most being held in congregate settings where social distancing is virtually impossible. The latest wave of Omicron reiterates a concern that has been long-standing for this population, that the only way to safeguard these individuals and save lives is to release people from detention.
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted just how dangerous immigrant detention is, with more than 31,000 cases of COVID-19 reported in ICE detention. ICE and private detention operators have taken turns blaming each other for woeful conditions and lack of planning or oversight. Advocates and attorneys have spent the last two years demanding more releases in order to protect the health and safety of those in detention and have highlighted the lack of sanitation and safety in these facilities, as well as inadequate vaccine access.
In California, advocates coordinated a campaign to demonstrate that ICE had refused to provide immigrants in detention with life-saving vaccines and had denied responsibility for the lives of those they detained. Despite coordinated efforts, many immigrants in other states were unable to obtain access to vaccines as federal and state authorities each did little to assert responsibility over-vaccination plans for those detained. In fact, ICE has apparently admitted that they have no official nationwide plan to roll out boosters to those who are medically vulnerable.
To further complicate matters, it seems that ICE has relied primarily on the Johnson and Johnson vaccine, which is no longer recommended by the CDC, as the primary shot for most immigrants in detention. In addition to issues with efficacy, those who received the Johnson and Johnson shot are much more likely to immediately require a booster, further compounding the danger posed by ICE’s inaction.
On January 26, two medical advisers for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) came forward as whistleblowers against the spread of COVID-19 in ICE detention, releasing a letter calling on the Biden administration to take drastic steps to curtail the spread of COVID. “In our own inspections of ICE facilities, for example, we have seen and documented inconsistent enforcement of mask use in detention centers, inconsistent testing and surveillance, and a failure to develop facility-level infection control plans – all critical measures to control the spread of what we know is a highly transmissible, life-threatening illness,” the letter states.
California Advocates Demand Release and Closure of Facilities
More than one year into the Biden presidency, advocates have expressed frustration and disappointment with the administration, which at one time campaigned on a platform that promised to end the use of for-profit detention facilities and Trump-era immigration practices. Despite these promises, the population of detained immigrants has grown 45 percent during the first year of Biden’s term. This fact is compounded by stunning estimates that the Omicron variant has led to a 520 percent increase in COVID-19 cases in detention.
The frustration over broken promises and the continued danger posed by the pandemic was particularly palpable in California during a recent battle to end a contract between ICE and the Yuba County Jail. For months, advocates, organizers, and attorneys led a campaign focused on releasing the last group of immigrants from detention in the notorious Yuba County Jail, a facility known for its dreary conditions and remote location.
Following the release of the last immigrant detainee in the facility on October 27, 2021, advocates hoped that the Biden administration would end the contract with the facility and worked with members of Congress to send a letter to the administration urging this resolution. The letter was signed by more than 20 members of Congress and called on the administration to end its contract with the facility over its abysmal conditions and record.
Despite the coordinated efforts of advocates and congress members and the momentum of freeing everyone from the facility, advocates were disappointed with the announcement that ICE was moving to repopulate the facility.
“We’ve known for decades that Yuba County Jail has a horrific record of mental and medical care that has unfortunately resulted in tragic deaths and lots of pain for lots of families,” said Laura Duarte Bateman in an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle. Bateman works with the California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice, which organized last month’s protest against Yuba accepting new detainees.
The decision, partly made by the refusal of the Biden administration to end the contract for a facility that was no longer needed, underscores the sense of frustration and betrayal felt by advocates. Many have noted that the COVID-19 pandemic paved the way for thousands of people to be released from custody, underscoring how truly unnecessary immigration detention is.
Notwithstanding this opportunity to change the course of detention, it appears the Biden administration is focused on keeping these structures intact, even at the expense of the lives of those detained.