Additional Coverage:
- Report slams ‘abusive treatment’ of migrants at ICE jail, claims some were forced to kneel to eat ‘like dogs’ (irishstar.com)
A shocking report reveals alleged human rights abuses of immigrants detained in three South Florida ICE facilities. The report, compiled by Human Rights Watch, Americans for Immigrant Justice, and Sanctuary of the South, paints a grim picture of degrading treatment, including a disturbing incident in a Miami jail where detainees were allegedly forced to kneel, hands tied behind their backs, and eat from styrofoam plates “like dogs.”
Interviews with detainees describe a range of abuses, including delayed and inadequate medical care, violence, severe overcrowding, and unsanitary conditions. At Krome North, overcrowding was so extreme that detainees reported being held on a bus for 24 hours with limited access to a single, quickly overflowing toilet. Inside the facility, some described spending up to 12 days in frigid conditions without adequate bedding, an area referred to as “la hielera” (the ice box).
The report also details allegations of excessive force. At the Broward Transitional Center, officers allegedly disabled a surveillance camera before a “disturbance control team” violently beat detainees protesting the lack of medical attention for a fellow detainee coughing up blood. Female detainees at Krome North reported being forced to use toilets in full view of male detainees and being denied access to showers, adequate food, and appropriate medical care.
Experts warn that these alleged abuses, occurring against a backdrop of increased immigration enforcement, constitute a human rights crisis with long-term consequences for Florida and the nation. The report notes a sharp increase in the average daily number of detained immigrants, reaching 56,400 in mid-June, with nearly 72% having no criminal history.
This represents a significant increase compared to the 2024 daily average of 37,500. Katie Blankenship, immigration attorney and co-founder of Sanctuary of the South, characterized the situation as “literally deadly,” arguing that the current approach to immigration enforcement is “terrorizing communities and ripping families apart.”