We know that ICE and GEO have no regard for human life. More people continue to die in ICE custody. Hunger strikers have sounded the alarm again and again throughout the years: food is inedible, medical neglect is a constant, racist bad treatment by GEO guards and ICE officers is a given especially if you are a person of color and don’t speak English, GEO doesn’t provide clean bedding, towels, underwear and wont hire cleaning crews in order to make more profit, the commissary store run by Keefe Group makes a killing by selling expensive items to people detained.
Free Them All is a public campaign where people detained reach out to La Resistencia for community support. They ask that we all, free on the outside, fight for them to be released from NWDC ICE detention due to the injustice of the system, the criminalization of our communities and the inhumane and unbearable detention conditions, all of this purposely designed for profit. Join us in highlighting different people who are detained inside the NWDC in Tacoma, WA, Puyallup land. Write, call, tweet for EVERY person who is bravely deciding to go public and share their stories with us, deciding to risk the retaliation inside for fighting for their rights. The time to #ShutDownNWDC and #FreeThemAll is now!
#FreeNehral!
“I am a devoted father, loving husband, understanding friend, supportive mentor, protective brother and nurturing son. I came to the US from the Philippines with my family when I was 17, with a green card. I served in the air force, went to college, worked hard to build a career, got married, bought a house, started a family, and established a sense of community. I have been detained at NWIPC in Tacoma, WA for a year. Being separated from my family and community has been devastating. Detainment stripped me of my dignity, humanity and everything I hold dear. We have lost everything in the process; our savings, our kid’s college funds, and soon our home.
I wish to raise awareness of my situation and many like me. I am hoping from this message I can uplift and encourage people to advocate on our behalves. We should not be ripped from our families and have not only our lives destroyed, but our families that are waiting for us. I am the main breadwinner for my family and without me, they are suffering. I have to watch my babies grow up through video chats that costs 27 cents a minute – a call we can only afford once a day for 15 minutes. I’ve missed my youngest child’s first birthday, first steps and now it looks like I will miss her second birthday as well. My oldest is 3 and now has separation anxiety and nightmares that bad men will come and take mommy too. They do not deserve this.
Life in detainment has been difficult. My sentence ended over a decade ago. I paid my dues and worked really hard to not just rehabilitate myself but also reclaim my place in society. The conditions in detention facility are inhumane. I have to see my family through glass, I cannot hold or hug my family, compared to other facilities. My wife spends around $300 in phone costs a month just to be able to maintain communication with me. That’s more than our phone bill.
Before detainment, I battled with severe anxiety, depression, and have had a suicide attempt in the past. I told the mental health provider at this facility that I needed more assistance in the form of medication. It has been 2 months and I have not been seen by a physician or psychologist to be prescribed medication.
I want to advocate for myself and my fellow detainees. We are human beings who deserve to be treated with dignity. I want to advocate for our families on the outside who are suffering and live in fear every day without our support. Please fight for us, be our voice, and stand up to injustice.”
#FreeJosePacheco
“Hello my name is Jose Pacheco. If you have any family members or anyone you know that is in prison or jail that is deaf or hard of hearing, become active because this is a failed system that no one is taking responsibility for. People in America have the right to vote, to get involved, have a fair trial, and have access to interpreters. I’ve had a very difficult time in [Northwest Detention Center]. Even the warden doesn’t make any effort to communicate with me so I go without understanding because they talk to everyone else but not me. For years it’s been failed attempts. Immigration court will say ‘we’re sorry’ but nothing changes. It’s their responsibility to provide equal access.”
#FreeRogelio
“Hello. My name is Rogelio Maldonado Rosas. I am from Mexico and have been detained in unit G3 for 1 year and 10 months. I suffer from kidney failure, diabetes, high blood pressure and I don’t get adequate attention for my conditions. This week I was taken to the ER and diagnosed as becoming blind from one eye as my diabetes has caused bleeding in my eye. The NWDC has not been giving me my diabetes medication and when I complained, they said that I had refused it. But how could I refuse medication that I need to live? Last May, I was diagnosed with kidney stones at the ER but the officers refused to get that medication as they said the NWDC doctors would provide it. I have not received anything and I’m in a lot of pain. Doctors that have treated me have said my life is in danger if I am deported to a place where I can’t receive dialysis, I can’t miss a single visit or I will die. I also want to be with my family.”
#FreeDiana
Hi, my name is Diana Burgos Vargas. I have been detained in D2 for about a year and 3 months. I arrived in the US when I was 15, fleeing from violent gangs back in Honduras. In June, the judge accepted that I could be killed by gang members but not the police which made her deny my case. This decision has not been written so my attorney cannot move forward. I am scared that I will be killed if I am deported. I want another chance to be with my four kids. I suffer from Bipolar disorder, cardiac disease and my symptoms have become worse. I have developed pre-diabetes because of the unhealthy food here. I have developed infections from bites of what I believe are insects in the blankets and sheets.