'Do not be discouraged. You are not forgotten'

Those words sent to an ICE detainee didn't reach her on the first try.

It’s no secret that the cruelty has ramped up in the current administration’s testosterone-and-racism-fueled “interior immigration enforcement.”

We’ve seen video after video of armed, masked men, often not identifying the agency they’re working for, kidnapping our neighbors from their homes and cars, the streets and lately, courtrooms.

We’ve also heard plenty about the awful, sometimes fatal, treatment and conditions in immigration detention centers — prisons — whether they’re run by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) or by for-profit companies such as CoreCivic and Geo Group.

At least nine people have died in ICE custody in 2025, in addition to many others in previous years (12 died in fiscal year 2024 under Biden).

Despite what the government mouthpieces say, there’s plenty of first-hand testimony about the horrible food and conditions, solitary confinement and denial of crucial health care — including this recent example from journalist Kate Morrissey in Beyond the Border on Substack and in Capital & Main.

And of course there’s the demeaning $1-a-day pay rate for jobs that detainees perform to earn money for telephone time and overpriced commissary food.

Expensive phone calls make receiving a letter from family, friends or supporters all the more valuable, something they can cherish and read over and over again in their darkest moments.

So … the government says, let’s see if we can ramp up the cruelty in that category, too.

A letter I sent more than two weeks ago to a detainee in an ICE prison far from her upstate New York home was returned to me this week.

I had written a brief note of encouragement, and enclosed two sheets of folded paper with an inspirational message in different languages, mini-pamphlets courtesy of Amnesty International — “Do not be discouraged. You are not forgotten.”

In my letter, I told the detainee that she could keep one for herself and share the other with anyone in the prison who speaks French, Arabic or Chinese. When ICE sent the letter back to me, I was surprised the pamphlets weren’t considered “contraband” and thrown away.

Instead, the reason cited for returning the letter was “A# missing and/or full name.” (A nine-digit A# is assigned to each person in the immigration system). But I had followed the instructions under “Sending items to detainees” on ICE’s website:

“Letters sent to detainees must include the last four digits of the detainee’s A-number (Alien Number), plus the sender’s name and address. To enhance the safety of the facility, all incoming mail is subject to screening for contraband. The mail is not read upon opening, only inspected by the delivering officer.”

If ICE wants senders to put their full name on the return address of the envelope, they should explicitly say that. My last name and address were in the upper left corner and my full name was inside in two different locations. Do I have to add my middle initial? Spell out my middle name? What if I’m a Jr. or Sr.? What would Jesus do?

Billions of dollars in taxpayer money are paying for such carelessness, callousness and cruelty.

I will re-send the letter, with my full name on the envelope and on the letter, and will re-enclose the mini-pamphlets from Amnesty International. If it comes back to me again, I will return to sender. As many times as it takes.

We cannot let the men and women in ICE prisons think they have been forgotten.