SAN DIEGO — Spoiled food, dirty water, no access to showers, and overcrowding conditions that make sleeping impossible are all common features of immigration detention centers, according to a report published Wednesday by researchers at UC San Diego.
By analyzing care files of more than 7,300 asylum-seeking families who were in federal custody between October 2018 and June, researchers were able to paint a picture of what life is like inside immigration detention centers.
It wasn’t pretty.
About 62% of families reported issues related to poor food and water quality, including not getting enough to eat. A little more than 45% reported issues like not being able to sleep because of overcrowding or because the temperatures were too cold. About 34% reported not being able to shower, not having clean bathrooms available and lacking a toothbrush or toothpaste.
The asylum seekers spent an average of three and a half days in the immigration detention facilities.
Researchers also found evidence of physical and verbal abuse.
Roughly 12% of families — or about 230 — reported some kind of mistreatment while in custody. That included being thrown against a wall, having legal documents confiscated and not returned and being told “go back to your f —country.”
The story’s lead author, Tom K. Wong, called it the most comprehensive account of what asylum seekers face when they are admitted into the United States.
“We previously only had glimpses,” said Wong, who is an associate professor of political science at UC San Diego and director of the U.S. Immigration Policy Center. “Now we have systematic evidence to support anecdotal accounts of sub-standard conditions in detention and abusive treatment of those detained along the U.S.-Mexico border.”
Wong’s team of researchers analyzed case files of 7,300 asylum-seeking families made up of 17,000 individuals including 7,900 children.
DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Advocates said the study raises serious concerns about the federal government’s treatment of migrants and called for congress to increase oversight of detention centers.
“From deplorable conditions in Immigration detention to experience verbal and physical abuse, to basic issues related to translation and interpretation, the data show that the U.S. is failing to live up to its obligation to treat people humanely, especially those who have experienced trauma,” said Norma Chavez-Peterson, executive director of the ACLU of San Diego of Imperial Counties.
Aside from poor conditions and allegations of mistreatment, the report also highlighted examples of immigrants not having access to translators or getting legal documents in languages they cannot speak; particularly when they speak languages other than Spanish.
About 88% of non-Spanish speakers were given instructions about immigration court dates, times and locations in Spanish.
People who speak indigenous Central American languages seemed to have an especially difficult time getting information in their language. Less than 1% of people who spoke those indigenous language received legal instructions in their primary language, according to the study.
“These findings raise serious due-process concerns,” said Kate Clark, director of immigration services for Jewish Family Service. “If asylum-seeking families are not being given vital instructions about their immigration proceedings in a language they can read or understand, how can we expect them to navigate an already complex legal process that is increasingly stacked against them?”
