“I want people to know what happened to my family. I want people to know the truth about how much the government hurt my children, my wife, and myself. I hope that if people know the truth, this will not happen to another family.” – Our client, José.
José, Josefina, and their children came to the U.S. seeking asylum. What they experienced, being detained for nearly a month in Blaine, WA, was absolutely horrifying.
The family of six – including children ages 13, 10, 5, and 11 months – were held for roughly four weeks in a cell that was hot and filthy, with no windows to the outside world. It was small and cramped, containing nothing except thin mats on the floor and a single toilet they were forced to use in front of each other.
When Josefina, who was 5 months pregnant, begged for help because she couldn’t breathe and felt dizzy, she was ignored. She only received medical treatment after she passed out. When released from the hospital, she was put back in the same dangerous conditions despite warnings from her doctors.
No one should have to go through the kind of abuse and cruelty that this family endured.
We filed a complaint on their behalf, seeking damages for the extreme physical, mental, and emotional harm that resulted from CBP’s reckless conduct that violated their own policies.
When government officials violate people’s rights, they must be held accountable. That’s why the ACLU is fighting back.
We’re joining ACLU affiliates from across the country to file more than 50 claims across 17 states and Washington, D.C., on behalf of dozens of people who have suffered serious violence, abuse, and neglect at the hands of federal immigration agents.
We won’t stop until this cruelty ends – and we will continue to use every tool at our disposal to hold this administration accountable for its unlawful and inhumane actions.
Thank you,
ACLU of Washington
American Civil Liberties Union
125 Broad Street, 18th Floor
New York, NY 10004, USA