Immigrant families in detention centers will return to visit their loved ones in person, after more than two years of only seeing them through video, communicating by email or talking on the phone.
This week the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) announced the reinstatement of visits in detention centers, after pressure from a national advocacy campaign led by a coalition of pro-immigrant organizations.
“After careful evaluation of national trends associated with covid cases-19, I am happy to announce that we are returning to social visits,” said Corey A. Price, associate director of ICE execution and deportation operations.
Noted that their teams will continue to monitor the conditions of the pandemic and will alternate phases based on the new information.
Visits to ICE detention centers were canceled in March 2020 when the pandemic broke out.
But according to immigrant advocates, the closure of visits exacerbated the traumatizing effects of detention, including prolonged isolation, damage to mental health and family separation.
Also blocked in-person group visits to monitor human rights abuses in detention.
Visits to federal prisons were reinstated in October of 2020, but not in the immigration detention centers.
“ It gives me great joy to realize that I will be able to hug my daughter ”, said Fidel García, who is currently detained in the detention center Golden State Annex located in McFarland, California.
“When I was detained by ICE on 12 July 2021, the prisons had already allowed visits for over a year, further demonstrating that ICE always had the authority to allow visits, but chose not to until today.”
He added that he feels happy because other people will be able to reunite with their detained relatives.
“Receiving visits will alleviate the emotional damage we suffer here; and it will motivate us to continue fighting for our cases in this horrible detention center.”
It should be noted that during pre-pandemic visits, families visiting their loved ones in immigration detention centers such as Adelanto are only allowed to hug and kiss them upon arrival, and another hug and kiss when saying goodbye. During the duration of the visit, they cannot touch each other again, only talk.
In the coming weeks, the campaign to reinstate visits will monitor compliance with the updated guide to ensure the unrestricted access to visits in detention centers.
Immigrant advocates report that the directors of several detention centers have informed them that they have not received any direction from ICE to reinstate visits.
The opinion is awaiting a response from GEO Group, the company that manages the Adelanto Detention Center, to find out when visits will reopen. Until now, the families do not know the exact date when they will be able to see their relatives in detention again.
The ICE informed in a statement that those who want to visit will be evaluated to see if they do not present symptoms of covid-01 and their temperature will be checked.
Those who are sick or present symptoms will not be admitted to the facilities for purposes of visiting their families, they indicated .
At the same time, detainees and visitors will be required to maintain proper hand hygiene, before and after the visit, as well as wearing masks and other applicable personal protective equipment.
The reopening of the facilities is exclusively for social visits, it does not apply to attorney visits that fall into a separate category.
ICE announced that all common areas of the facilities will continue to be cleaned daily, including tables, chairs, and other high-traffic locations. Those interested in making a visit are recommended to go to the ICE.gov site
“The reestablishment of visits is a positive step forward and a testament to the collective strength of our communities that pushed for this change, inside and outside of detention,” said Andrea Cárcamo, director of policy for the organization Freedom for Immigrants.
“Although we are happy that the administration has finally taken this step, we recognize that this order is long overdue”.
He stated that the communities should not have had to fight tooth and nail to end this harmful policy that could have been reversed a year ago.
“ Immigration detention is inherently abusive and inhumane, and we will continue to work to abolish this system in its entirety”.
He added that visits to the community continue to be a fundamental tool while these centers as it allows them to document abuse and foster connection with people who are detained and ultimately build a world where all people can live in freedom and dignity.