Tampa stands in solidarity with immigrant detainees

Tampa, FL – On a hot and humid Saturday, June 13, a spirited crowd of about 20 people stood outside Tampa’s police headquarters in downtown to demand the release of immigrant detainees from inhumane conditions, an end to Tampa’s collaboration with ICE, and legalization for all.

The crowd was there to take part in the Legalization for All network’s weekend of action in solidarity with detainees in custody in prisons like Adelanto and Delaney Hall. The call to action saw affiliates across the country rally in front of and march to detention centers.

This rally, called by the Tampa Immigrants’ Rights Committee, was held outside Tampa police headquarters because of Tampa’s ongoing participation in the 287(g) program, which allows local police and other law enforcement to act as deputized ICE agents to carry out immigration arrests and enforcement. 

A speaker from local non-profit Magnified Voices raised the issue of human dignity being violated every day at these detention centers, as a hunger strike by detainees at Adelanto Detention Center in California has raged for weeks. Detainees report overcrowding, rotten food, dirty drinking water and inadequate clothing. Echoing reports from other detention centers across the country, detainees also report inadequate and slow medical care. 

Chants of, “From Duval to Delaney Hall, free our people, free them all!” sounded out throughout downtown as the rally proceeded.

Erain Boxtha, of the Tampa Immigrants’ Rights Committee made the point, “Florida is number two in immigration detentions, and it is number one in local and state cooperation with ICE. Averaging about 100 daily arrests thanks to the help of local and state law enforcement cooperation.” He linked the profit motive of private detention center owners like CoreCivic and GEO Group to the increase in detentions and inhumane conditions, “And detention centers have created enormous wealth to private contractors aligned in exploiting the most vulnerable of us!” 

Activists heard directly from former GEO group executive George Zoley, in a recording from a shareholder meeting, bragging of a profit increase of 700 times since Trump came back to office,. The conclusion of the rally saw participants vow to keep fighting unjust detentions and Tampa’s 287(g) agreement.

#TampaFL #FL #ImmigrantRights #TIRC