As the number of COVID-19 cases at Otay Mesa rises, so do alarming reports of hunger strikes and the use of pepper spray.

Recent court rulings are starting to recognize the imminent danger faced by immigrants in detention as the pandemic continues to spread.

by Cindy KnoebelThe chorus of calls for help from immigrants trapped inside detention centers keep growing ... and growing. Reports from the Mesa Verde ICE Processing Center in Bakersfield, CA are particularly troubling. On March 25, eighty-five men wrote a petition to ICE; on March 30, the Interfaith Movement for Human

Maybe it is time that we as a nation re-evaluate, and recognize the humanity of all people. Our quarantine seems difficult, indefinite and uncertain. So does theirs. To them, the circumstances of COVID-19 are nothing new.

"We are literally prisoners and there's nothing we can do. Just wash our hands and try to keep things clean."

FFI will now provide comprehensive bi-weekly updates about the impact of COVID-19 on detained people through info gathered through first-hand accounts and media reports.

As the pandemic continues to spread inside detention centers, ICE says less than 2 percent of its detained population has been classified for potential release.

Jarred Bean's timely essay provides stark parallels between ethnic cleansing and the government's response to the COVID-19 crisis.

One week after launching its COVID-19 hotline and interactive COVID-19 map, FFI has posted 89 reports from detention centers around the country that cite instances of unsanitary conditions, inadequate medical services and protests.