Protesters gathered outside the George H. Fallon Federal Building on Friday, expressing their outrage over federal immigration enforcement actions in Baltimore.
The demonstrations focused particularly on the detention of dozens of women previously held in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities in Baltimore.
Advocates and lawmakers have long criticized the conditions in these holding cells, which were again highlighted during the protest.
Prolonged Detention Issues
According to the People’s Power Assembly (PPA), 40 women were detained in a holding room for two days in March while they sought to fulfill mandatory requirements with ICE. The organization learned about these detentions through contacts with activists in Washington state.
PPA organizer Andrew Mayton noted that these activists regularly visit detainees in ICE facilities, where they first heard of the situation involving the women in Baltimore.
“These women have no criminal backgrounds and were simply complying with legal obligations,” Mayton stated, emphasizing that they were involved in active immigration litigation aimed at achieving permanent residency.
Activists from the PPA reached out to the families of the detained women, only to inform them that the detainees were transferred to other facilities just prior to a visit by members of Maryland’s congressional delegation.
During that visit on March 9, nearly half of the women were discovered to have been deported, while those remaining were relocated to facilities in Washington and Arizona.
At Friday’s protest, a statement from a loved one of one detainee was read aloud, highlighting the emotional toll of the situation.
Concerns Over Detention Conditions
The conditions in the waiting room have raised serious concerns among protesters. They reported that the women lacked access to essential resources such as water, toilets, and menstrual hygiene products.
Conditions have been condemned as inhumane for over a year, especially in light of a disturbing video released in January showing overcrowded conditions.
ICE previously attributed the delays in processing to weather conditions, yet public scrutiny remains high regarding the treatment of detainees.
While WJZ News reached out to ICE for comments on the women’s detainment, there has been no response from the agency. Historically, ICE has defended its facilities, arguing that media portrayals of its processing centers are misleading and irresponsible.
In March, a federal judge approved a class-action lawsuit against the operations of ICE’s detention centers in Baltimore, which established limitations on the number of detainees and specified cleaning standards.
Moreover, the Maryland Attorney General’s Office has filed a lawsuit against ICE, demanding documentation related to the investigation of these detention conditions.
