Trump immigration policy is worse than merely cruel

In the name of “law and order,” the Trump administration has locked up countless immigrants — many of whom have no criminal convictions, and many of whom were here lawfully. The result is a sprawling detention system that punishes the innocent, tears families apart, and violates the very principles of justice it claims to uphold.

Even worse, these men, women, and children — snatched away from their homes, workplaces, or even scheduled immigration appointments — are often detained in brutal conditions.

In a new report, Human Rights Watch, Americans for Immigrant Justice, and Sanctuary of the South looked at three Florida detention centers: Krome, Broward Transitional Center (BTC), and the Federal Detention Center (FDC).

We found that conditions are not just inhumane — they actually violate international law.

Human Rights Watch documented detainees shackled for hours on buses without food or water, forced to sleep on concrete floors in freezing cells, and denied access to basic medical care.

Some were punished with solitary confinement for seeking mental health support. Others were returned to detention after emergency surgery and then denied prescribed follow-up medication.

These are systemic abuses, exacerbated by overcrowding and fueled by policies like the Laken Riley Act and Florida’s 287(g) agreements, which deputize local law enforcement to act as immigration agents.

The result? A dramatic surge in arrests and detentions, often of people who pose no threat to public safety.

As of June, nearly 72 percent of people in immigration detention nationwide had no criminal history. Many had lived in the U.S. for years, working, raising families, and contributing to their communities.

Some had entered lawfully under humanitarian parole programs, like United for Ukraine. Others had Temporary Protected Status (TPS) because their home countries of Haiti, Afghanistan, Venezuela, and Nicaragua were too dangerous to return to.

These protections were never meant to be traps. Yet under current policies that have terminated the humanitarian parole and TPS regimes, attending a scheduled immigration appointment can lead to arrest.

One man I spoke to was detained at his appointment to legalize his status in the U.S. after his marriage to an American woman. He was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) right after officials told him his application had been approved.

These are people following the rules the government laid out for them.

The cruelty is not just in the detention — it’s in the treatment.

Guards mocked detainees, denied them food, and forced them to eat like animals with their hands tied behind their backs. Two died after medical neglect while in detention. ICE held women in male-only facilities without access to medical staff, showers, or privacy.

The Trump administration’s policies are fomenting a climate of fear so pervasive that immigrants are avoiding hospitals, schools, and even churches, families told me. They are afraid to report crimes, seek medical care, or attend immigration appointments. This undermines public safety for immigrants and U.S. citizens alike and erodes community trust.

Congress needs to take meaningful action to reduce the harm of immigration detention.

That starts with rescinding the $45 billion Congress recently allocated in the massive tax bill for building ICE detention facilities, a tripling of its detention capacity, and the additional $13.5 billion it earmarked to reimburse state and local governments for immigration and border enforcement.

The administration should prioritize community-based alternatives to detention and reserve detention for cases where no other option exists.

Congress should also press the administration to re-designate and extend TPS and restore humanitarian parole programs. These protections are not loopholes — they are lifelines.

The United States has the capacity to treat immigrants with dignity — and the legal obligation to do so. And it has the moral imperative to stop punishing people for seeking safety, family unity, and opportunity.

• Belkis Wille is an associate crisis, conflict, and arms division director at Human Rights Watch, and the author of the recent HRW report “You Feel Like Your Life is Over.” Follow her on Twitter @belkiswille or on Bluesky ‪@belkiswille.bsky.social‬.‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬