According to a report by the Associated Press, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is planning to build an immigrant “staging area” near the Alexandria International Airport in Alexandria, Louisiana.
The airport serves as the largest hub for immigrant deportations in the United States. Data from the Human Rights First organization’s ICE Flight Tracker shows that last year, there were over 4,400 immigrant enforcement flights to and from the Alexandria International Airport.
The planned “staging area” is set to have 528 bed spaces and could potentially be operational as early as August.
ICE emphasizes that the facility is a “staging area” and not a detention center, stating that immigrants will only stay there for a few days at most.
Officials from the airport management department indicated that the facility is intended to provide “humanitarian assistance” for families choosing to voluntarily return to their home countries. The location near the airport is believed to facilitate ICE officers in preparing immigrants and unaccompanied children during the final stages before flights depart.
Advocates for immigrant rights suggest that some families and unaccompanied children may choose to voluntarily leave due to pressure or a lack of understanding about their options.
ICE documents show that families and children at the facility will be under ICE’s legal guardianship and can only be released under ICE’s instructions.
Records indicate that ICE has informed the contractors of the “staging area” not to refer to family members in the facility as prisoners, detainees, or inmates.
ICE has instructed the contractors not to use fences or cages when transporting families and unaccompanied children. The agency also stated that there is no need to keep a headcount at the facility and allows families to wear their own clothes. Additionally, unaccompanied children are typically not sent to ICE detention facilities but must be placed in state-approved shelters and foster care programs managed by the Office of Refugee Resettlement under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
The “staging area” is located within the England Airpark, formerly the England Air Force Base, which was a large aviation, commercial, and industrial complex. After its closure in 1992, the base gradually became a key economic development center in central Louisiana, featuring residences, hotels, a golf course, educational institutions, and other public facilities, transforming into a multifunctional community.
Ralph Hennessy, Executive Director of England Airpark, mentioned that the facility will be operated by the non-profit division of prison contractor LaSalle Corrections, potentially starting operations as early as next month.
LaSalle Corrections operates several private prisons and federal immigration detention centers throughout the southern United States, including the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, also known as “Angola Prison Farm.”
Hennessy stated that ICE signed a contract last month to build the facility at a former military base near the Alexandria International Airport.
He also told the Associated Press, “The people coming here are voluntarily going home, and most of them are returning as families.”
(Reference: This article is based on reporting by FOX NEWS)