He Lost the Ability to Walk. ICE Withheld the Medicine That Could Have Stopped It.

I just spoke with Gabri, the daughter of Gabriel, who suffered a stroke in detention because lifesaving medications to prevent his stroke were withheld, he was shackled for no reason in a cell in a way that promoted stroke, he was not given water consistently, which can also promote a stroke, and he was not given timely medical care when he lost consciousness, which could have potentially prevented the paralysis he now suffers from. Please hear directly from Gabri on her Instagram; her eloquence, bravery, and intelligence are unparalleled. @thegabrij

This is an example of what life inside detention looks like, for both adults and children. The basic human rights we’re all entitled to (food, clean water, sanitation, and medical care) are simply not provided to these prisoners. I worked in a supermax prison for a month in medical school; all of the aforementioned basic human rights are provided to inmates in facilities that house murderers and pedophiles.

We are failing our children.

In addition to Gabri and Gabriel’s story, I want to share more from my visit to Dilley. What struck me most was the visitor/intake office. On the wall outside the facility, I was speechless for the first time in a loooooooooong time (you all know I love to yap if you follow me on Insta). I watched in shock as I read cutesy signs reading “Welcome to the Dilley Immigration Processing Center” in glitter foil, and “Together we shine” surrounded by colorful seashells, one bearing the CoreCivic logo. Right between the cute signs was the real message: “No phones, cameras, or laptops.” Dilley only endures because of how limited access is to what happens inside, and how much further restricted access is to the children and families held there.

Here’s one example: when congresspeople conduct oversight visits, the Dilley trailer prison used to leave a sign-up sheet for prisoners who wanted to speak with them. They no longer offer these sign-up sheets, because CoreCivic realized the oversight visits were leading to bad press and public outcry over the people, especially the children, locked inside.

During the most recent congressional oversight visit to Dilley last week that I joined (albeit not allowed inside), members were only able to talk to one 16-year-old. No other children were made accessible to them. They did talk to many parents, however, including a mother who had fled her physically abusive husband with her children for their protection, only to be locked away in Dilley, with her children returned into the arms of their abuser.

I have hope that public support for these practices is built on the lies this administration constantly spews about its immigration crackdown. So let me shed some light. There were 112 children in Dilley last week, several with disabilities, autism, and more. Children with autism are suffering acutely right now, because prison is no place for them, or for any child.

I am asking you, the human beings reading this, to look at what our country is doing to children, in and out of detention. To show just how far this administration’s war on children extends, let’s talk about the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR).

Share The State of Pediatrics

ORR, the office literally responsible for housing and reunifying unaccompanied children, has shared 460,000+ leads with ICE since January 2025, leading to more than 12,000 arrests of children and the family members trying to pick them up. A mother and her 6-year-old were reunited in March. Days later, ICE detained them both. (Reuters, published July 28, 2026).

To make matters worse, organizations like Acacia Justice, which provide essential legal services for unaccompanied children, funded by Health and Human Services (HHS), are losing that funding because they refuse to hand over children’s protected information.

Ending child detention starts with un-weaponizing the very agencies meant to protect kids in the first place, and treating them for who they are: children.

I have several actions for you today. Never forget: your vote is your ICE whistle, and we all need to blow it.

1. Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121: “I’m [NAME], a constituent from [ZIP]. Child detention is child abuse, and it’s causing predictable, severe, and long-term harm to these children. I’m calling on [Rep./Sen. NAME] to demand every child’s release from immigration detention, now, and an end to all child detention in this country. Thank you.”

OR

Text GO ESH to 50409 to automatically send a message to your Congress member and senators calling for these inhumane detention centers to be shut down.

2. Donate to Each Step Home, an incredible charity I work closely with, which sends funds directly to the commissaries of children and families in Dilley. (hyperlinked!)

3. Donate to Acacia Justice - an organization that provides legal aid to children in immigration custody who our government has now defunded. (hyperlinked!)

4. Talk to your friends about what you read here today. You’d be shocked how many people truly don’t know what’s happening — it’s our job to shed light on the abuse happening inside these prisons.

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