The New York Times summarizes immigration detention when they write: “On any given day, about 31,000 people who are not American citizens are held in detention in a patchwork of county jails, privately run prisons and federal facilities while the government decides whether to deport them. Getting details about those who die in custody is a difficult undertaking left to family members, advocacy groups and lawyers.” In fact, Jane Guskin writes in her article “Immigration Detention: The Case for Abolition” “In 1994, there were an average of 6,785 people in immigration detention…in 2008, that number is around 32,000 and growing. That’s an increase of more than 470% in less than 15 years.” She further asks: “Do you feel safer, knowing that 32,000 people are behind bars today for the sole reason that they were not born in this country and have been deemed “removable”? Are you satisfied to spend over $1.2 billion a year of your tax dollars keeping immigrants locked up while the prison industry’s profits soar? On July 26, 2007 U.S. District Court Judge Margaret M. Morrow ruled that substantial evidence showed “a significant number of violations of critical provisions of the injunction dealing with detainees’ access to legal materials, telephone use and attorney visits.” People come here to because they cannot achieve a better life in their homeland. Let us NOT add to their misery by detaining them indefinitely with inadequate medical attention, and unreliable access to rights taken for granted by Americans. Let us be the country we say we are—live up to our own ideals. Treat these people fairly and humanely while enforcing our own safety and security. In the words of Ranjana Natarajan, ACLU/SC staff attorney: “What’s happening to immigrants in detention should disturb all of us…People seeking America’s protection from torture and persecution deserve a fair hearing and respect for their basic rights.”