USA – Muslim immigrants are being served pork at a US detention facility in Miami, Florida, forcing them to choose “between their faith and starvation,” said advocates.
In an August 19 letter, immigrant advocate groups say they have received “alarming reports” that Immigration and Customs Enforcement and its officers have been serving “pork or pork-based products to Muslim detainees” at its Krome Service Processing Centre in Miami, Florida.
“Muslim detainees have been forced to accept these meals,” the letter states, “because the religiously compliant or halal meals that ICE has served have been persistently rotten and expired.”
The letter, addressed to ICE and the US Department of Homeland Security, was signed by attorneys with Muslim Advocates, Americans for Immigrant Justice, and the Atlanta-based law firm King and Spalding LLP.
“At least 2-3 times a week, the pre-plated meals unambiguously include pork,” said the lawyers. “Consequently, 2-3 times a week, Muslim detainees at Krome are forced to choose between faith and food.”
According to the letter, complaints have been ignored, with the facility’s chaplain reportedly dismissing their concerns (“It is what it is,” they said, per the letter).
The Krome Service Processing Centre is housed on a former military base and, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, housed as many as 650 people.
