Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta Denounces the Planned Expansion of the FIPC
ATLANTA, GA – On June 5, 2025, the Board of Commissioners for Charlton County, Georgia approved a contract modification with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) agency to expand the Folkston ICE Processing Center (“FIPC”), an immigration detention center in South Georgia, making it the largest ICE detention center in the U.S. with nearly 3,000 beds. Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta (“Advancing Justice-Atlanta”) denounces the expansion and joins advocates and community members who are calling for the facility to be shut down and to cease expansion efforts of ICE detention.
Combined with the Stewart Detention Center, the FIPC’s expansion would make Georgia an epicenter of immigration enforcement and detention, providing infrastructure for the government to carry out anti-immigrant policies, including mass deportations. Last year, Georgia passed legislation requiring state and local law enforcement agencies to pursue memorandums of agreement with ICE to enforce federal immigration laws or else lose state or state-administered federal funding. Since the law’s enactment, more than 20 law enforcement agencies in Georgia have entered into new 287(g) agreements, and more immigration arrests have been reported across the state, including many that did not involve criminal charges. Recently, ICE has arrested people while they were attending church, work, or their immigration court hearings. Georgia’s immigration detention centers have become severely overcrowded as a result.
Individuals in ICE detention face deplorable conditions, including unsanitary facilities, physically and sexually abusive treatment from detention center staff, inappropriate use of solitary confinement, and medical neglect. Since last year, four individuals have died while in immigration custody here in Georgia. People in detention also face barriers to accessing in-language resources and legal assistance.
These issues broadly impact immigrant communities of all backgrounds. Recently, ICE rescinded its policy to generally release Vietnamese nationals in ICE custody after 90 days if they have final orders of removal and arrived in the U.S. before 1995. The rescission of this policy means these individuals will face longer periods in detention and an increased likelihood of deportation. ICE notified lawyers with Advancing Justice-Atlanta of changes to this policy per the settlement in the litigation of Trinh v U.S. ICE Director.
“I am horrified. Instead of dismantling unjust systems, the decision to expand Folkston reflects a decision to instead expand and entrench systems of xenophobia and white supremacy,” said Anjali Nair, Deputy Director of Advancing Justice-Atlanta. “The immigration system provides pathways to immigration relief. Individuals should have the freedom and dignity to pursue these options while living with their families and contributing to Georgia. We stand in solidarity with demonstrators across the country and Georgia who invoke the fundamental tenets of democracy to denounce systems of cruelty.”
Asian Americans Advancing Justice is a national affiliation of four leading organizations advocating for the civil and human rights of Asian Americans and other underserved communities to promote a fair and equitable society for all. The affiliation's members are: Advancing Justice | AAJC (Washington, DC), Advancing Justice - SOCAL, Advancing Justice - Atlanta, and Advancing Justice - Chicago.
