Local leaders and advocacy groups are set to hold a press conference in El Paso, Texas, on August 21 to voice opposition to the Trump administration’s plan to convert Fort Bliss into what would become the nation’s largest immigration detention center. The proposed facility is estimated to cost $1.26 billion and could house up to 5,000 people.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (TX-30), and several local organizations will participate in the event. They argue that turning a military base with land in both Texas and New Mexico into a detention camp would expose detainees to extreme weather conditions such as heat and sandstorms, raising concerns about humane treatment.
Speakers at the press conference will also highlight Fort Bliss’s past use as a Japanese internment camp during World War II. They warn that using military resources for expanded immigration detention could have negative effects on communities across the country.
Participants scheduled for the press conference include United States Representative Jasmine Crockett (TX-30); Marisa Limón Garza, Executive Director of Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center; Samantha Singleton, Policy Director of Border Network for Human Rights; Becca Sheff, Senior Staff Attorney at ACLU of New Mexico; Osvaldo Grimaldo, Policy & Advocacy Strategist for Border & Immigrants’ Rights at ACLU of Texas; and Jovanny Sebastian Hernandez, Community Organizer with New Mexico Dream Team.
The event will take place at Estrella del Paso in El Paso and will be livestreamed on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/aclunm.
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