Friend,

When the Trump administration hastily opened Camp East Montana – a sprawling immigration detention tent camp in the El Paso desert – advocates warned of a humanitarian disaster.

Now, that disaster has come to pass. Egregious medical neglect, disease outbreaks, violent uses of force by officers, and dangerous and unsanitary living conditions have been reported since the facility opened, leading to the deaths of three detained people, including one death that was ruled a homicide by the El Paso medical examiner. We're suing to hold ICE accountable for these gross violations of civil and human rights, and to ensure that no other human being has to endure what the Trump administration has inflicted on our clients at Camp East Montana.

We need your help to fund this battle – and to help defend all of our civil liberties. To mark our nation's 250th anniversary and the ACLU's continued fight alongside vulnerable communities to uphold the promises of the Constitution, all gifts will be matched up to $100,000.

Gerald is one of the thousands of people locked inside Camp East Montana. After fleeing torture in Cameroon, he never expected to face more here. In his own words:

"No human being should ever have to go through this... I have been beaten here, and even today, I still have a brace on my hands and wrist. I am in pain, and I am scared to be here."

M.R. is also locked away in the same desert tent camp. He wrote:

"The facility did not send a cleaning crew to clean and sanitize the area. So, the toilet and shower area remained dirty with human feces on the floor… The detainees used their own personal towels to clean and wipe the floors. That was degrading to us all."

Navdeep, another immigrant in ICE custody, said, "It feels like we are just political pawns taken from our jobs and families and forced into a temporary tent that is not designed for human life. We could die here, and it feels like no one here would care."

Our fight at the ACLU is one way we make sure Navdeep, M.R., Gerald and thousands of others detained at Camp East Montana know that people DO care. And right now, every dollar you give to power this critical work will be MATCHED up to $100,000.

Please, will you donate now to DOUBLE your impact in our fight to fuel legal defense for vulnerable communities, uphold the U.S. Constitution, and defend the rights of EVERYONE in this country?

At Camp East Montana, ICE is denying medication to people with serious medical conditions, including to diabetics. ICE is holding thousands of people on the same military base where our government once imprisoned people of Japanese descent during World War II – and claiming it's normal.

It's not "normal." It's illegal. Every person in ICE custody has a right to humane treatment, regardless of immigration status. That's the law. When ICE breaks it, we sue.

But lawsuits like this don't run on outrage alone. They run on resources – and we count on supporters like you to show up, month after month, for as long as it takes.

Will you rush a donation now, while every dollar will be MATCHED? Your gift fuels the ACLU'S ongoing work in the courts, the streets, and the legislatures to defend our rights and civil liberties.

Together, we can end the horrors of immigration detention.

In solidarity,

Carmen Iguina González
Pronouns: She, her, hers
Deputy Director for Immigration Detention, ACLU National Prison Project