Fort Dix, New Jersey—Church World Service today expressed alarm and deep concern over news that thousands of immigrants are to be detained at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. Under the purview of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Fort Dix will be a de facto penitentiary for immigrants in the region rounded up in ongoing raids. The Department of Homeland Security further announced that military personnel, including 1,000 additional National Guard troops, will oversee the detention, bringing military personnel into immigration enforcement only months after they were deployed to assist immigrants seeking asylum and fleeing political violence in their own country.
CWS notes that in recent years Fort Dix was used as a place for welcoming Afghans who worked alongside the U.S. presence in Afghanistan along with their families—all of whom were under threat by the Taliban for allying themselves with the United States. Thousands of Afghans across the U.S. associate Fort Dix with their first place of welcome.
“Using Fort Dix to detain immigrants and expedite deportations is not only cruel, but unconstitutional. It was only a few years ago that Fort Dix was a place of welcome for Afghan men and women seeking safety for their families; they were under threat from the Taliban for serving alongside our troops and staff as interpreters and translators. Back then Fort Dix was inundated by volunteers and immigration experts, not troops.” said Courtney Madsen, New Jersey Director at Church World Service. “We call on the administration to reverse this further militarization of immigration enforcement and instead honor our county’s tradition of welcoming those in need of protection and support. The people of New Jersey don’t want this detention center, those stationed at Fort Dix don’t want it, and the families torn apart by the policies of this administration assuredly don’t want it.“
For more information, or to speak with Madsen, contact media@cwsglobal.org.