Civil Rights Groups Demand Federal Probe Into Baldwin ICE Facility
ACLU and immigrant rights groups demand congressional probe into Baldwin ICE facility as detainee hunger strike enters fourth day.
BALDWIN, MICHIGAN — Civil rights organizations are urging Congress to initiate an independent investigation into the North Lake Processing Center amid a hunger strike by immigration detainees that began Monday.
The ACLU of Michigan and the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center are advocating for federal oversight following reports of inhumane conditions at the ICE detention facility operated by the private GEO Group.
“This is all driven by the Trump administration’s cruel and xenophobic mass deportation agenda of rounding up and warehousing longtime members of our communities, forcing them to either endure indefinite detention under inhumane conditions or, out of desperation, to make the devastating choice to leave their families and communities behind,” said Loren Khogali, executive director of the ACLU of Michigan.
Detainee Deaths Raise Questions
The demands follow the death of Nenko Stanev Gantchev in detention at North Lake in December. The circumstances surrounding his death remain unclear despite repeated attempts by Democratic members of Congress to obtain answers from federal officials.
U.S. Reps. Hillary Scholten of Grand Rapids and Haley Stevens of Birmingham previously visited the facility in February but received no clarification about the death or facility operations.
Ongoing Hunger Strike Prompts Action
The civil rights organizations have been in contact with numerous people detained at the North Lake Processing Center who described similar inhumane conditions. The hunger strike by detainees entered its fourth day Thursday.
The facility operates under contract with ICE but is privately owned by the GEO Group, which operates nearly two dozen facilities nationwide where ICE serves as the primary customer, according to the company’s SEC reports.
History of Operational Concerns
The organizations noted that when the GEO Group previously operated North Lake as a prison, there were documented operational issues. The facility’s transition to immigration detention has raised additional concerns among advocacy groups about conditions and oversight.
The call for congressional investigation represents the latest effort by civil rights advocates to increase federal oversight of private detention facilities housing immigration detainees in Michigan and across the country.
