LGBTQ+ immigrants have alleged that they faced sexual harassment, medical neglect, coerced labour and abuse at an ICE detention facility in Louisiana.
Detainees at the South Louisiana Ice Processing Center (SLIPC) in Basile, Louisiana have alleged in several legal complaints that they experienced inhuman and abusive treatment at the hands of an assistant warden named Manuel Reyes and other staff members, including being forced to perform oral sex, undertake an unsanctioned work programme that left them injured and having their intimate items taken by officers.
They also claim queer people were specifically targeted and faced sexual harassment and assault, degrading treatment, and threats.
Those who submitted complaints to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) about their conditions and treatment said they experienced retaliation from staff members for reporting the abuse to authorities.
As reported by The Guardian, who spoke with the detainees, they said those who raised their voices about the abuse were beaten and had medical treatment denied.
Mario Garcia-Valenzuela, a trans man who was detained in the facility, told the outlet he was “treated worse than an animal”, adding: “We don’t deserve to be treated like this.”
He said how Reyes forced him to move heavy objects and perform cleaning duties using industrial-strength chemicals with adequate protective gear. When he complained, Garcia-Valenzuela said Reyes and fellow officers forcefully stripped him naked and mocked him.
Another detainee, Kenia Campos-Flores, said they experienced persistent migraines and chest pain due to the cleaning chemicals. They also said they were sexually harassed by Reyes who would enter their dorm and took personal possessions, including their boxers.
A third detainee, Monica Renteria-Gonzalez, said the chemical they were made to use to clean the floors seeped through their shoes and burned the bottom of their feet, leaving them injured. On several occasions whilst they were cleaning, they said Reyes would come up behind them and touch them inappropriately.
A fourth detainee, pursuing her complaint anonymised as Jane Doe, described that Reyes forced her to perform oral sex on him on a “near daily basis”. She states that he threatened to kill her if she refused to perform the sex act and that despite since being deported to the Dominican Republic, she continues to fear for her safety.
The legal complaint on behalf of the four detainees was submitted by Robert F Kennedy Human Rights, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Louisiana and the National Immigration Project.
“These people screamed for help”
Their civil rights complaint to Department of Homeland Security oversight bodies, including the Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) reads: “Beginning in September 2023, former Assistant Warden, Mr. Manuel Reyes (“AW Reyes”) orchestrated an unsanctioned, late-night forced labor scheme that targeted transgender and gender-nonconforming detained people; perpetrated and enabled repeated acts of sexual harassment and assault; and oversaw a pattern of retaliation, including the inhumane use of solitary confinement, physical abuse, and baseless disciplinary citations after complaints were made. Facility and ICE personnel also denied or delayed urgent medical and mental health care and failed to provide reasonable accommodations for disabilities.
These actions and omissions are egregious violations of the ICE Performance‑Based National Detention Standards (“PBNDS”), the Department of Homeland Security’s Prison Rape Elimination Act (“DHS PREA”) standards, ICE’s own Sexual Abuse and Assault Prevention and Intervention (“SAAPI”) directives, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and constitutional due process protections that ICE facilities must comply with. ICE has a duty to ensure detained peoples’ constitutional and statutory rights are protected, and staff should have taken care to uphold those rights in their conduct and decision-making.”
Sarah Decker, a senior staff attorney at RFK Human Rights, told The Guardian that complaints were “systematically ignored” and “buried”, explaining: “These people screamed for help. They filed grievances. They filed complaints under the Prison Rape Elimination Act, they filed verbal complaints through the office of the inspector general. They did everything to get help.”
In response to the allegations raised in the report by The Guardian and the legal complaint, a spokesperson for Geo Group – the firm that operates the facility – denied the claims.
“GEO strongly disagrees with these baseless allegations, which are part of a long-standing, politically motivated, and radical campaign to abolish ICE and end federal immigration detention by attacking the federal government’s immigration facility contractors,” Christopher V Ferreira, a Geo group spokesperson, said in a statement.
Ferreira continued that “GEO has comprehensive policies in place for the reporting and investigation of all incidents that occur at the Center, including instances of assault and/or sexual assault,” adding: “These policies are governed by standards and requirements established by the US Department of Homeland Security.”
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