Immigrants and refugees are diversifying and reviving rural America, yet the prevalence of immigration detention centers continues to create fear and harm in immigrant communities. According to a recent analysis by the National Committee on Responsive Philanthropy, 52% of immigrant detainees in the country are being detained in rural areas, creating a burden for their families, many of whom are forced to travel hundreds of miles to see their loved ones. The isolation of these centers has also made it difficult for detainees to receive legal representation and language interpretation. Because of this, detained individuals in rural areas are denied asylum and deported to their countries of origin at much higher rates (87%) than detainees in urban areas (54%).
In this webinar session – a part of Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees’ (GCIR) series on rural power building – we will explore how detention in rural areas is harming communities; challenges to obtaining legal representation; and how local, state, and national organizations are confronting the harmful impacts of immigration detention on communities across the country.
We invite you to view the video recordings and materials from the first two sessions of the rural power building series: