BURLINGTON — On Wednesday U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern became the first lawmaker to successfully make an unannounced visit to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Burlington, which has been under scrutiny for the last year over alleged poor conditions for detainees inside.
McGovern, D-Massachusetts 2nd Congressional District, said in a post on social media afterwards that he conducted the visit unannounced “because the law gives Members of Congress the right to inspect these facilities without warning.”
“We continue having to sue to ensure the administration complies with the law. We continue winning,” said McGovern’s post. “The American people deserve the truth. When an administration is rounding people up, hiding behind locked doors, and constantly lying, Congress has a responsibility to show up, ask questions, and demand answers.”
McGovern said ICE honored a court order mandating that lawmakers be allowed inside ICE facilities for unannounced visits, but did not allow his staff to join him.
“What I saw was very concerning. They are detaining people who should not be there at all. They are targeting people who are part of our communities. They are not going after the worst of the worst,” said McGovern. “Inside that facility, I saw the human cost of this cruelty up close. This is not about safety. It is not about justice. It is about fear, dehumanization, and an administration that treats decent people like they are disposable.”
McGovern continued, “Trump lied. He is going after good people. Decent people. People who belong with their families and in their communities — not detained in an ICE facility. The American people need to see this for what it is. It is wrong. And I am not going to stay quiet about it.”
In a statement to The Sun Thursday evening, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said the Burlington field office “is a processing facility not a detention facility.”
“Illegal aliens who have no right to be in our country are quickly processed and transferred to permanent housing at a detention facility,” said DHS. “These claims that there are subprime conditions or overcrowding are false. The ICE Burlington facility has an abundance of supplies, including food, assorted snacks, water, personal hygiene, and bedding materials. Detainees have access to a shower.”
DHS continued, “In fact, ICE has higher detention standards than most US prisons that hold actual US citizens. All detainees are provided with proper meals, medical treatment, and have opportunities to communicate with lawyers and their family members. Men and woman are processed separately.”
McGovern’s visit took place the same day as the 50th weekly Bearing Witness protest outside the facility, which began last spring when rumors of the conditions inside began to surface.
Bearing Witness spokesperson Linda Duchin told The Sun Thursday more lawmakers need to follow McGovern’s lead.
“While we are pleased that representative McGovern visited unannounced yesterday, we need the entire Massachusetts delegation to follow his lead so there can be meaningful oversight. We still have four Massachusetts members of Congress, who have never been to Burlington,” said Duchin.
Todd Palmer, who organizes Justice for All Thursdays, a similar weekly standout that takes place on Thursdays, said McGovern’s visit “sets an important precedent.”
“It is now important that the other members of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation keep the pressure on by visiting frequently,” said Palmer Thursday afternoon.
Palmer said the same attention should be given to the Plymouth County Correctional Facility in Plymouth, where he said hundreds of immigrant men are being held.
Other members of the Massachusetts delegation like U.S. Reps. Lori Trahan, Seth Moulton, Jake Auchincloss and Ayanna Pressley and U.S. Sen. Edward Markey have visited the inside of the facility, but those have been in visits that were prearranged with ICE. Other attempts have been made by lawmakers to make an unannounced visit inside, but all attempts prior to McGovern’s resulted in lawmakers being turned away at the door. Earlier this year a judge ruled DHS may not prevent lawmakers from conducting surprise inspections of federal facilities.
Original article
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