Last week, we were heartbroken to learn that Kesley Vial died by suicide at Torrance County Detention Facility. Our staff here at Santa Fe Dreamers Project joins our friends and colleagues throughout the immigrant justice community in grieving this incredibly tragic loss.
"Today we honor the life of Kesley Vial. A young man who had his whole life ahead of him. Family and friends will remember him as a loving soul who, even in the darkest times, would bring joy to everyone around him. This loss could have been prevented, yet ICE continues to place immigrants’ lives in danger. Torrance County Detention Facility must be shut down before another tragedy happens. We cannot stand by and allow ICE to continue this blatant disregard of people’s lives. We must stand in solidarity with the people that remain detained and continue to push for the closure of not only Torrance County Detention Facility but ALL detention centers. Every immigrant’s life matters. Kesley’s life matters."
Leslie Gomez, Legal Assistant, El Paso Immigration Collaborative
"Our hearts go out to the loved ones of Kesley Vial. The abhorrent conditions and disregard for human dignity in immigration detention cannot be emphasized enough. And when it comes to the inhumane conditions of Torrance County Detention Facility in particular, the detention center where Kesley was detained, ICE was repeatedly warned of the harmful conditions and yet continues to detain migrants at the facility."
Sarah Sanchez, DOJ Accredited Representative
Kesley, like all of the individuals detained at Torrance, was subject to horrific conditions, a lack of information about his legal status, neglect and mistreatment by ICE and by CoreCivic staff who run Torrance. Over a year ago, Santa Fe Dreamers Project sued CoreCivic for excessive force and inhumane conditions at Torrance. Then in March of this year, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) issued an alert recommending that ICE immediately stop detaining individuals at Torrance, due to the horrifying conditions there that they documented in their findings. Unfortunately, but predictably, ICE failed to take the recommended action to save the lives of the individuals in their custody.
See the ACLU's press release to learn more about what our partners are doing to hold ICE and CoreCivic accountable.
Today and every day, we reaffirm our commitment to the abolition of immigration detention. We know that ICE cannot, and importantly, will not, take the required action to protect and honor the lives of immigrants. Immigration detention must end, and ICE must be held accountable for the tragedy they cause in the lives of all those caught in this system.
Tomorrow night, join us outside of the ICE Office in Albuquerque at 6:00pm to honor Kesley's life and to demand accountability. Until every last person is released from immigration detention, it is our duty to keep showing up -- in the courtroom, in the detention centers, at the voting centers, and in the streets. We hope to see you there.
In Solidarity,
SFDP Staff
