SF Vegan Activist Being Held at ICE Detention Center in Need of Support

A traveler who spends most of his time in SF and NY is being held at the Northwest ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] Detention Center in Tacoma, Wa. He is known locally in the community from Food Not Bombs, Homes Not Jails, and various tenants' rights, homeless rights, bike rights and animal rights activities among other things. He was arrested at the end of May for trespassing to watch the sunset from a roof of a building in Seattle and spent some time in county jail before there was an ICE raid and he was transported to Northwest because his citizenship status is in question.

The Northwest Detention Center is a private for-profit immigration prison owed by a corporation called GEO, which operates prison facilities in Australia, The UK, South Africa, the US and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The facility's housing capacity is 1,000 detainees, making it the largest detention center owned by GEO Group on the West Coast. They are notorious for mistreating their detainees, sometimes to the point of fatality. The GEO Group is an international corporation that operates prisons around the country and is frequently in the news for its abuse of prisoners in its care resulting in many preventable deaths.

More info: http://www.tahomaorganizer.org/the-northwest-detention-center
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GEO_Group

JL has been in Northwest since about May 27th and has started a hunger strike on June 11 in response to being denied vegan meals. He had sent in several requests, claiming/explaining food allergies, to no avail. He was feeling very weak by that time because there was very little he could eat. You can help by calling the facility at 253-396-1611 and asking that they provide food he can eat. You will need his full name and A# [Listed below.]

Letters of support are always appreciated, too, and you can write to him at:
JL
A# 88737285
1623 East J Street, Suite 5
Tacoma, Washington 98421

There is also a specific ongoing letter-writing campaign to write letters to the immigration judge. This is for people who know JL. The hearing will probably be within the next two weeks, so please be in contact if you are able to help with this.

There will be an emergency letter writing party on Saturday, June 14th at 3pm at the Long Haul in Berkeley. It ends at 5pm so try not to be too late!

There is also a variety show benefit at Station 40 in SF at 3pm on Sunday, June 22nd.

For more information, please e-mail enola at dudenowhey @ gmail.com.