Dear Editor:
Did you know that Border Patrol operates for up to 100 miles inland from all U.S. borders? That puts Border Patrol active in almost all of Florida. With our Republican-controlled government, we are a tempting target for ICE and Border Patrol throughout the state. They already have four detention centers in Florida (new and old), and they want to build more. ICE is working on plans to put a 3,000-bed prison on Hwy 301, just south of Starke across from Walmart. This would be a huge facility, larger than any other prison in the area.
But what are they talking about, a “Detention Center?” This is where people would be held after violent capture by ICE, after violation of due process. Prisoners would be brought here as a result of racial profiling. That is, the ICE agent thinks someone looks Hispanic, or looks foreign, including Asian people and people they assume are African.
What is a concentration camp? It is a facility where governments imprison specific groups — such as political dissidents, ethnic and religious minorities, or other civilians — without trial, often under harsh conditions. These sites are used for detention, forced labor, or punishment, particularly during wartime or authoritarian rule. The new ICE Detention Centers are in fact concentration camps.
The Constitution gives all residents due process. That is, the right to a judicial warrant, to know the charges against them, and a fair trial. These things are not happening before people are ripped from their lives. Concentration camps deprive people of privacy, adequate food, medical care, a lawyer, a phone call, and human dignity. The Bradford County sheriff declares that he will be in charge and he will ensure safe, humane treatment. His reputation is on the line. His jail houses 200 — this is another scale entirely.
The proposed location is a big problem too. Many have pointed out the traffic problems and incompatibility with shopping, etc. The property is owned by the county, and it is a toxic site. Clean-up is incomplete and expensive. Neighbors’ wells have become polluted with volatile, organic chemicals and vinyl chloride, which are known carcinogens. Although ICE wants this concentration camp opened within weeks, some citizens are insisting on an environmental impact study and complete remediation before they can proceed. We hope and pray this will stop them long enough to make it unattractive to ICE and Border Patrol. Many residents have spoken out against this facility; none are for it.
Sincerely,
Kate Ellison
