ICE: Release 62-year-old Bertha Arias!
Are these the 'criminals' the government says it's keeping in migrant detention? Is detaining abuelas in the U.S. national interest?
ICE has kept a 62-year-old woman in detention in El Paso for over 10 MONTHS, where she recently fell and required stitches for her injuries.
Call the El Paso field Office at (915) 225-1901/1941 and demand ICE El Paso release Bertha Arias immediately, her A# is: 209-824-747!
On November 18th, 2016, Bertha Lidia Arias presented herself at the Paso Del Norte International Bridge to ask for asylum. 62-year-old Ms. Arias fled Honduras with her 15-year-old granddaughter. The Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, one of the most notorious street gangs in Honduras and other parts of the Western Hemisphere, wanted her 15-year-old granddaughter to have a forced relationship with one of the much older gang members. This event was not isolated: MS-13 had been after her granddaughter since she was 13-years-old. When Ms. Arias confronted MS-13, they threatened to kill her and burn down her home.
Ms. Arias concluded her only option would be to flee to the United States and start a new life for her and her granddaughter. When she arrived here, instead of receiving a warm welcome from the “Land of the Free” ICE separated her from her 15-year-old granddaughter and sent her to the El Paso Processing Center. After almost a year, Ms. Arias’s nightmare in detention continues. She has been to the hospital twice since at El Paso Processing Center. Her family reports this was due to a wrong medical diagnosis by the medical staff there.
Before arriving to the United States, Ms. Arias was struck by a car and received surgery on her legs and hip, leaving her with metal pins in her legs. These pre-existing injuries are causing her excruciating pain while in detention. While ICE has the power to release Ms. Arias under humanitarian parole, they have refused. In August 2017, she slipped while taking a shower and hit her head on the cement floor. She cut her elbow and was given stitches. Her medical chart shows that she also suffers from a multitude of medical conditions, including, Diabetes, Palpitations, Hypertension, Abnormal EKG, Tachycardia, and a Heart Murmur.
Ms. Arias’s case is a clear reflection of the U.S. government’s priority to deprive asylum seekers of their liberty simply to maintain a detention bed quota. Everyday, 34,000 immigration detention beds are legally mandated to be occupied, mostly in privately-run camps. This allows private corporations to profit off the backs of hardworking taxpayers by retaining this arbitrary quota and charging the government outrageous prices for their inhumane services.
ICE spends 2.2 billion dollars of taxpayer money per year to maintain its private contract detention centers, federal ICE detention centers, and county jails holding ICE detainees. By releasing Ms. Arias, the taxpayers would save thousands of dollars being spent on her substandard medical treatments and her unjustified incarceration.
The Detained Migrant Solidarity Committee demands justice for Bertha Lidia Arias. ICE needs to release Bertha Lidia Arias, and stop holding all individuals who require special medical attention. Our government must understand that mass detention/incarceration is immoral, wasteful, and unjust. Ms. Arias has now been detained for over 10 months. Despite her health conditions and the pain she is suffering, ICE has cruelly refused to release this humble grandmother. ICE has denied her parole three times while her asylum claim is still currently pending.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) needs to do the right thing before it is too late and Ms. Arias sustains further injury at their hands. Ms. Arias must-have proper care and be reunited with her daughter and granddaughter.
Call the El Paso field Office at (915) 225-1901/1941 and demand ICE El Paso release Bertha Arias immediately, her A# is: 209-824-747!