Lewiston Sun Journal reporter Joe Charpentier’s account of the harrowing conditions under which people rounded up by ICE are being held in Burlington, Massachusetts, includes details from many sources and should shock the conscience of anyone who reads it.

Nonetheless, when presented with this evidence, an ICE spokesperson denied the allegations, saying, according to the article, that “all claims of substandard conditions at the facility are false.”
The only way to reconcile these diametrically opposed views of the conditions at Burlington is for it to open immediately for thorough, periodic, unannounced inspections by the congressional authorities who control funding for this and other facilities.

They should make their findings public, and hold accountable those who create and maintain the misery that the human beings in ICE custody must endure. In addition, detainees should have immediate access to legal counsel to ensure that those wrongfully detained can be released.

Ellen Murphy
Portland