In the midst of a global pandemic, ICE has a choice to either let families stay together and free or to keep them shut in despite dangerous and life-threatening conditions. ICE has chosen again and again to make an unconscionable choice.

Today, Senators Tammy Duckworth and Corey Booker, along with 18 other Senators released a letter to U.S. Senate leadership building on Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) research to call for increased funding in support of communities affected by gun violence during the COVID-19 pandemic. This comes on the heels of an AIUSA letter sent earlier this week to Senators calling for increasing funding for vital community programs that work to prevent gun violence, along with the release of people in immigration detention at risk for COVID-19.

Family residential centers that are detaining families throughout the United States are now weaponizing the public health response to COVID-19 to punish and deter people seeking safety, much as they have previously done with the “zero tolerance” family separation policy, Amnesty International USA and immigration advocates will discuss, in a new media briefing.