ST. PAUL, Minn. & ATLANTA —The Center for Victims of Torture™ (CVT) today joins the Southern Poverty Law Center, El Refugio, the Black Alliance for Just Immigration, and the Georgia Human Rights Clinic (GHRC), in demanding an investigation into the continuing allegations of medical neglect at Stewart Detention Center, and echoes the call for the immediate release of medically vulnerable immigrants whose lives are threatened by the deadly resurgence of the COVID-19 virus. 

“More than 900 people have tested positive for COVID-19 at Stewart since the start of the pandemic and four have died, making Stewart the deadliest ICE immigration detention center in the country. The cruel disregard of the health and safety of migrants in U.S. custody violates our nation’s most basic obligations under international law, including under the UN Convention Against Torture, and it has gone on too long.  

“We urge the Biden administration to take immediate action to protect the lives of vulnerable migrants at Stewart and to bring an end to the fundamentally flawed system of immigration detention in the United States.” – Darlene Lynch, head of external relations, CVT Georgia

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The Center for Victims of Torture is a nonprofit organization headquartered in St. Paul, MN, with offices in Atlanta, GA, and Washington, D.C.; and healing initiatives in Africa and the Middle East. Visit www.cvt.org.