Desperate Migrants Await Justice in Detention

Mon Feb 09 2026 22:46:11 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

Prolonged detention of migrants under harsh conditions raises concerns about human rights and immigration reform in the U.S.

Felipe Hernandez, a Nicaraguan asylum-seeker, shares his harrowing experience of prolonged detention at U.S. immigration facilities. With reports of inhumane conditions and increasing wait times for legal hearings, many detainees are left feeling hopeless amidst policy changes that allow for indefinite detainment. As human rights organizations raise alarms, the plight of these individuals highlights the urgent need for reforms in immigration policies.

Felipe Hernandez Espinosa, a 34-year-old asylum-seeker from Nicaragua, has endured 45 days at a Florida immigration holding center known for its unsanitary conditions, including reports of worms in food and overflowing sewage. Following that, he has spent five months in a detention camp at Fort Bliss Army base in Texas, where human rights organizations raise alarms about similar conditions. Unable to return to Nicaragua, Hernandez awaits a hearing scheduled for February 26, feeling increasingly desperate.

Recent changes in immigration policies have extended the duration of detentions, making it more common for individuals like Hernandez to remain in custody for over six months as they await their cases to be heard in backlogged courts. I came to this country thinking they would help me, and I’ve been detained for six months without having committed a crime, he lamented during a phone interview.

Legal experts express concern that this is not an isolated situation, with many detainees expressing a desire to be deported but caught in a limbo due to court schedules. Currently, there are over 70,000 individuals in ICE custody, with nearly 7,252 having been detained for six months or more, significantly higher than previous years. Some, including a Chinese man and various others, have reported remaining in these facilities for over a year without hearing from an immigration judge.

The influx of migrants facing such dire circumstances calls for immediate attention and reform in immigration policy, as too many individuals are left feeling hopeless amid the trauma they experience while detained.