Immigration officials are reportedly force-feeding migrants on a hunger strike
America's immigration court system is facing a backlog of cases that will take years to sort through. Some migrants have been sent to Mexico to await asylum hearings, while others are being detained in the U.S. as their status is processed.
But while embarking on a hunger strike to protest conditions in immigration facilities, some detainees in El Paso, Texas have been force fed by immigration officials, The Associated Press reported Thursday.
Nearly 30 detainees, largely from India and Cuba, have been refusing food and drink for upwards of 30 days, a relative and attorney tells AP. They are protesting "rampant verbal abuse and threats of deportation from guards," as well as "lengthy lock ups while awaiting legal proceedings," AP writes. The recent government shutdown only exacerbated those long waits, pushing asylum hearings scheduled during the shutdown to the end of a very long line.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement has "a more narrow definition of hunger strike," AP says. But a spokeswoman confirmed Thursday that 11 detainees at the El Paso Processing Center are refusing food and four more are doing so across Miami, Phoenix, San Diego, and San Francisco. In a Wednesday statement to the El Paso Times, ICE said six strikers are "currently being hydrated and fed non-consensually under court orders" using nasal tubes.
ICE also said it is monitoring the striking detainees' food and water intake "to protect their health and safety," AP writes. But one relative countered that, saying his two nephews have had nosebleeds and been "hospitalized, back and forth." A self-described dissident in detention and an attorney both said hunger strikers are being put in solitary confinement "as punishment." Read more at The Associated Press.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
'The House under GOP rule has become a hostile workplace'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
The Shohei Ohtani gambling scandal is about more than bad bets
In The Spotlight The firestorm surrounding one of baseball's biggest stars threatens to upend a generational legacy and professional sports at large
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Feds raid Diddy homes in alleged sex trafficking case
Speed Read Homeland Security raided the properties of hip hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump gets $289M break, first criminal trial date
Speed Read The former president's fraud bond has been reduced to $175 million from $464 million
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US-Israel rift widens after UN cease-fire resolution
Speed Read The U.S. declined to veto a U.N. resolution calling for a two-week "immediate cease-fire" in Gaza
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
New Jersey first lady exits race to replace Menendez
Speed Read Tammy Murphy dropping out paves the way for Rep. Andy Kim to become the state's next senator
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Russia blames Ukraine for deadly ISIS Moscow attack
Speed Read Putin has ignored the Islamic State's claim of responsibility for the concert hall shooting
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump-RNC pact puts Trump legal bills ahead of GOP
Speed Read The former president has struck a deal with the Republican National Committee to put donations toward his legal bills
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Vietnam president resigns amid scandal
Speed Read Vietnam loses its second president in two years as Vo Van Thuong steps down
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Texas migrant law in limbo after Supreme Court OK
Speed Read The law has been blocked again, mere hours after the Supreme Court allowed the state to arrest migrants
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Cubans rally for 'power and food' in rare protests
Speed Read The protests came after 18-hour rolling blackouts and food supply shortages
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published