Dozens of undocumented women escaping violence in Spanish-speaking countries have started a hunger strike over civil rights violations suffered at a Texas immigration detention center.
At least 27 women at the T. Don Hutto Detention Center refused dinner Wednesday night and asked for their immediate release, citing harsh treatment, inedible food, no security, and poor living conditions. One woman said ICE officers "treat us like dogs."
Civil rights group Grassroots Leadership published handwritten letters from detainees this week.
"It gives me great pleasure to participate in this hunger strike. I can't take any more of this punishment. I'm dying of desperation, from this injustice, from this cruelty," wrote Insis, from Honduras. "They treat us like dogs... When I feel bad, they say I'm lying..."
Patricia, from El Salvador, said, "They leave us in here while fighting the case and at the end they tell us that our case has been denied after keeping us locked up for a long time and they send us back. Also, the food they give us here is very bad, gives us stomach problems, and is almost always the same. All human beings have rights and opportunities in this country and we believe that we have a right to bail."
"There are grave injustices being committed, detentions spanning eight months, 10 months, a year, a year and a half, just to end with them telling us that we have no rights and we will be deported with disdainful words and gestures to make us feel worthless," Guatemalan Magdrola wrote.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spokesman told The Guardian that it was not aware of the protest, saying "Currently, no one at the T Don Hutto Detention Center was identified as being on a hunger strike or refusing to eat."
The Taylor, Texas detention center is run by prison company Corrections Corporation of America, which, according to the American Civil Liberties Union, was sued in 2009 over childrens' living conditions. A landmark settlement against the T. Don Hutto center led to the release of 26 children and promises of improvements. It is now a women-only facility.
Wednesday's hunger strike comes as the UN Refugee Agency detailed why a record number of women and children are fleeing Central American countries. The 160 women they interviewed talked about being assaulted, raped, extorted, and threatened by criminals. They explained that seeking help from authorities only put their families in more danger.