Kit Roberts
Several famous people are among thousands who have signed an open letter calling for the 'immediate closure' of an ICE detention facility.
This is the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas where people who have been detained by ICE, including children and families, are held.
At the time of writing, the petition on Change.org has drawn 47,484 signatures, and it says: "Children belong in schools and on playgrounds, not in detention centers."
Celebrities including actors, filmmakers, and musicians are among those to have put their names to the petition which heavily criticizes the Dilley Immigration Processing Center.
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The list also contains a large number of doctors, as well as religious ministers, academics, activists, and lawyers who are all publicly calling for the facility's closure.
Many signatories also left comments on the letter condemning ICE and expressing their anger and sadness.
The open letter says: “No child should be locked in an immigration detention centre. We, the undersigned, call for the immediate closure of the Dilley Immigration Processing Center, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) family detention centre in Texas and an end to the detention of children and families.
“Children held in immigration detention endure trauma, neglect and conditions that violate basic standards of health, safety, dignity and human rights.”
It continued: “We urge the federal government and CoreCivic to close the Dilley facility immediately, return children and families to the homes and communities they were taken from and to end child imprisonment now.
“Our commitment does not end with closure. We demand transparency, accountability, and systemic reforms to prevent these abuses from happening anywhere in the United States.”
But who were the famous names on the list of signatories?
There was John Legend, Mark Ruffalo, America Ferrera, Elliot Paige, Jane Fonda, and Hannah Einbinder.
Others included Kesha, Lena Dunham, Lance Bass, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Brandi Carlisle, Wunmi Mosaku, Glennon Doyle, Hasan Minhaj, Katie Couric, and Pedro Pascal.
The petition also describes the treatment of children who are being held in ICE detention centers, referencing court filings alleging 'refusals to provide clean water, rotten food contaminated with worms, dangerous medical neglect, sleep deprivation, denial of legal counsel, the separation of children from their families, and retaliation against families protesting the inhumane conditions'.
NBC news has reported that 'more than 2,300 children' have been held at the center with their parents for weeks and even months on end.
UNILAD has approached the Department of Homeland Security for comment.