Here is Rep. Eskamani’s response to federal officials considering opening an immigration detention facility in Orlando:
“The idea of expanding ICE detention in Orlando comes at a moment when immigration enforcement has increasingly looked like vigilante-style policing: aggressive street actions, broken windows, people dragged from cars, and even U.S. citizens being detained in the chaos and killed. That isn’t “public safety.” It’s intimidation, and it sends a chilling message to families, workers, students, and visitors that any interaction could become a frightening encounter with the federal government.Independent oversight has warned that DHS and ICE have had major failures in how they identify and handle people who may be U.S. citizens, including recommendations that ICE improve training and data collection on these encounters. When a system can’t reliably protect citizens’ rights and due process, expanding detention capacity is not just wrong. It’s dangerous.Orlando does not need an ICE detention facility. We need policies that keep families together, respect due process, and protect the economic and social fabric that makes our region thrive. I oppose any and all plans to open up an immigration detention center in our community and urge private and local decision-makers to reject any proposal to open up an ICE detention facility in Orlando.”