03/12/24 03/12/24 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now! >> i what to think the haitian people for domain and what is good. you have served with integrity, wisdom, and honor. god bless you. amy: after a week long state of emergency, haiti's unelected prime minister ariel henry says he will resign once a

transitional council is established. the caribbean organization caricom has reportedly proposed a seven-member presidential panel that would appoint a new interim prime minister. we'll get the latest. then to gaza. >> international humanitarian law -- the israeli assault on rafah puts people gaza into even deeper circle of hell. amy: we'll go to rafah to speak with yousef hammash with the norwegian refugee council and to francesca albanese, united nations special rapporteur on the occupied palestinian territory. then as president biden pushes a bipartisan bill to crackdown on immigrants, the tacoma washington based group la resistencia is reporting two suicide attempts at the massive

northwest detention center run by geo group. >> i was brought back to my cell and iso-so people running around. the police arrived and the fire department. i meant was black and appeared to have hung himself. amy: all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. haiti's unelected prime minister ariel henry has announced he will resign once a transitional council is established. he made the announcement after caribbean leaders held an emergency meeting in jamaica to discuss the crisis in haiti where armed groups launched an uprising against henry last week. tony blinken attended the meeting and pledged $100 million to help finance the deployment of a multinational force mission

to haiti. henry announced his plan to resign in a video message posted online. >> after the council of ministers, it is been agreed to set up appearances -- transitional council. once chosen, they will governor over different sectors of life. haiti wants peace. haiti needs to rebuild democratic institutions. i'm asking all haitians to remain calm and you have nothing they can to come back as fast as possible for the good of the country. amy: "the miami herald" is reporting caricom has proposed a plan to set up a seven-member presidential panel that would appoint a new interim prime minister for haiti. barbados prime minister mia mottley said the panel would only include haitians who support the deployment of a u.n.-backed security force. last week, ariel henry traveled

to kenya, which is slated to lead the mission. he has been unable to return home and was reportedly most recently in puerto rico. on monday, one of the leaders of the recent armed uprising in haiti, jimmy chérizier, who is known as barbecue, warned against outside forces picking haiti's next leader. >> we take this opportunity to say to the international community that if it continues down this path, it will plunge haiti into chaos. today it is clear it is the working-class districts and the haitian people who know what they're suffering at the moment and it is up to them to choose the person who's going to lead them and the way he is going to lead them. amy: more on haiti after headlines. al jazeera is reporting israeli forces in gaza have killed at

least people who were waiting 11 for aid in gaza city. more than 20 injured people were taken to al-shifa hospital. health officials say israeli forces have killed more than 400 aid seekers and gaza in recent weeks. this comes as israel continues to restrict aid coming into gaza which is on the brink of famine. the u.n. is reporting one truck was recently denied access to gaza because it contained scissors inside medical kits. unrwa head philippe lazzarini criticized the decision, saying -- "medical scissors are now added to a long list of banned items the israeli authorities classify as 'for dual use'." he went on to write -- "the list includes basic and lifesaving items -- from anesthetics, solar lights, oxygen cylinders and ventilators, water cleaning tablets, cancer medicines and maternity kits." meanwhile, an aid ship bound for

gaza has set sail from cyprus with 200 tons of food supplies. the uae-funded mission was organized by the two aid groups, world central kitchen and open arms. inside gaza, palestinians marked the first day of ramadan monday . >> the first day of ramadan is very tough. we don't know what we are going to cook, what we're going to have for the meal breaking the fast. also the meal before the fast at dawn, we could not cook. there is no gas. we get out to let the fire and it is really cold. how are we going to cook? the prices are unimaginable. prices of the tomato and potatoes are high. we can't get meat or chicken. everything is very expensive. we don't want aid. what we want is a cease-fire. amy: on monday, senior u.s. intelligence officials testified before congress. the director of national

intelligence avril haines warned the war in gaza will increase the threat of terrorism for years. >> the crisis has galvanized violence by a range of actors around the world. while it is too early to tell, it is likely the gaza conflict will have a generational impact on terrorism. amy: "the guardian" is reporting 12 prominent israeli human rights organizations have signed an open letter accusing israel of failing to abide by a ruling of the international court of justice to facilitate more humanitarian aid into gaza. in the letter, the groups wrote -- "the icj order is a legal obligation to end the humanitarian catastrophe in gaza. it must be abided by, not only to ease the urgent suffering of civilians, but for the sake of humanity as a whole." the u.n. agency for palestinian refugees, unrwa, has accused the israeli military of beating and

waterboarding some of its staff held in israeli prisons. an unrwa report states -- "agency staff members have been subject to threats and coercion by the israeli authorities while in detention, and pressured to make false statements against the agency, including that the agency has affiliations with hamas and that unrwa staff members took part in the 7 october 2023 atrocities." unrwa has faced a crisis ever since israel accused a number of its staff workers of taking part in the october 7 attacks. although israel did not share evidence backing up its claim, many countries, including the united states, cutting off funding to unrwa despite gaza's growing humanitarian crisis. in recent days, sweden and canada resumed funding. india has enacted a controversial citizenship law that makes it easier for non-muslims who move to india to

become citizens. under the law, hindus, buddhists, christians, sikhs, jains, and parsis who moved to india before 2015 from pakistan, afghanistan, and bangladesh would become eligible for citizenship. the law excludes muslim immigrants. the bill's passage in 2019 sparked deadly protests but the law was not implemented until now, just ahead of a major election as prime minister narendra modi seeks a third term. amnesty international criticized the law, saying it is "a discriminatory law that goes against the constitutional values of equality and international human rights law." a former manager at boeing who became a whistleblower has been found dead in south carolina. according to the bbc, john barnett had given evidence in a whistleblower lawsuit against the company in recent days. the charleston county coroner said barnett died of a self-inflicted wound on friday. barnett had worked at boeing for

32 years before retiring in 2017. he later spoke to "the new york times" about problems at a boeing south carolina plant that manufactures the 787 dreamliner aircraft. on the campaign trail, donald trump suggested monday he was open to cutting spending on social security and medicare. during an interview on cnbc, trump said, "there is a lot you can do in terms of entitlements, in terms of cutting." president biden responded with a message on social media saying, "not on my watch." meanwhile, the republican national committee has fired over 60 staffers just days after trump's daughter-in-law became the rnc new co-chair as the former president strengthens his control of the republican party. in other trump news, the former president is seeking to delay the start of his upcoming hush money trial which is slated to begin march 25 in new york. trump has requested the trial wait until the u.s. supreme court reviews his immunity claim

in another case. republican alabama senator katie britt is facing backlash after telling a misleading story during her much criticized response to president biden's state of the union last week. while criticizing biden's border policies, britt told the story of a 12-year-old girl who was sexually trafficked by drug cartels and repeatedly raped. >> we would not be ok with this happening in a third world country. this is the united states of america and it is past time, in my opinion, that we start acting like it. president biden's border policies are a disgrace. amy: what senator britt didn't tell the nation is that the incident took place during the administration of president george w. bush, that the abuse took place in mexico, and that drug cartels were not involved.

the woman who britt referenced, karla jacinto, appeared on cnn over the weekend. >> yes, in fact i hardly ever cooperate with politicians because it seems to be the only want an image. they only want a photo. to me that is not fair. i work as a spokesperson for many victims who have no voice. i would like them to be empathetic. all the governors and senators to be empathetic with the issue of human trafficking because there are millions of girls and boys who disappear all the time. people who are really trafficked and abused as she mentioned. i think she should burst take into account what really happened before telling a story of that magnitude. amy: more on that story later in the broadcast. in california, a 15-year-old black teenager with autism was shot dead saturday at his home by a sheriff's deputy.

the teenager, ryan gainer, was reportedly holding a gardening tool when he was fatally shot by a deputy from san bernardino county sheriff's department. officers gad come to his home after receiving reports of a domestic incident. attorney dewitt lacy said -- "there are great questions as to whether it was appropriate to use deadly force against a 15-year-old autistic kid who was having an episode. we need to see the video and the moment of the shooting but it doesn't seem like anyone was in imminent danger of death or great bodily injury." and in sweden, police have forcibly removed climate activist greta thunberg and dozens of other environmental protesters who were blocking the entrance to the swedish parliament for a second day. thunberg spoke at the action. >> right now we are a group of young people who are blocking entrance to the swedish parliament, a protest against the ongoing destruction of our

life or systems and people who have been killed as a result of the climate crisis and that needs to come to an end. we have had enough. amy: and those are some of the headlines. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman in new york, with democracy now!'s juan gonzález in chicago. hi, juan. juan: hi, amy. welcome to all of our listeners and viewers across the country and around the world. amy: we are beginning today's show with haiti, where the unelected prime minister ariel henry has announced he will resign once a transitional council is established. he made the announcement after caribbean leaders, a secretary of state tony blinken, and others held an emergency meeting in jamaica to discuss the crisis in haiti where armed groups launched in uprising last week against henry. he announced his resignation in a video message posted online. >> after the council of

ministers, it is been agreed to set up a presidential transitional council. once chosen, the council will govern over different sectors. haiti wabts peace. haiti needs to rebuild democratic institutions. i'm asking all haitians to remain calm and do everything they can for peace and stability to come back as fast as possible for the good of the country. amy: "the miami herald" is purporting caricom will appoint an interim prime minister who would rule until elections are held. barbados prime minister said the panel would only include patients who support the deployment of a u.n. fact security force. last week prime minister ariel henry travel to kenya, which is slated to leave the security mission. he is been them able to return home and was reportedly -- he

has been unable to return home and was most recently puerto rico. on monday, one of the leaders of the armed uprising in haiti, known as barbecue, warned against outside forces picking haiti's next leader. >> we take this opportunity to say to the international community that if it continues down this path, we will plunge haiti into chaos when it chooses a small group of politicians and negotiates with them a paper to decide who can be president and what kind of government we're going to have. it is clear the working-class districts and the haitian people know what they're suffering at the moment and it is up to them to choose the person who is going to lead them and the way he is going to lead them. amy: for more, we're joined by jemima pierre, professor at the social justice institute at the university of british columbia in canada and research associate at the university of johannesburg. she is a haitian-american scholar and co-coordinator of the black alliance for peace's haiti/americas team, which has been closely following the crisis in haiti.

she has a recent piece in nacla headlined "haiti as empire's laboratory." welcome back to democracy now! events and development's are proceeding quickly. can you respond to ariel henry's announcement, we believe from puerto rico, that he will be stepping down and what exactly that means? >> thank you for having me back again. it is interesting what many people are saying, how could a prime minister that was not chosen by the people or as an elected official resign when he did not have a mandate to begin with. what i and many see is a charade apparently happening in the sense that they are trying to put the veneer of legality on the situation, basically saying henry has to resign in order to have a presidential counsel in

order to move on with so-called free and fair elections. to me, the people making the decisions continue to make the decisions and the resignation is only a veneer of legality for those making the decision. that itself is a problem that is not going to be solved. juan: professor, all of the coverage we're getting here in the u.s. is of chaos created by gangs in the street. you have a different perspective and view of these so-called gangs. you object to the use of the term. can you talk about why and the role of the gangs enforcing henry out? >> like i said yesterday, the problem people focused on and what makes the media, what makes the mainstream news in the u.s. is a picture of extreme violence. i don't like the term gangs because i don't think they are gangs. it is a racialized term used

especially when it comes to people from nations like haiti. i think these are armed groups, paramilitary, and some have access to guns. in that sense, we have to be clear kate is not a bunch of people running around, you know, in terms of thinking about movies from the 1990's and the u.s. about gangs. the second thing, the so-called gang violence is not the main problem in haiti. the main problem is the constant interference of the international community. the u.s., france, canada. what is fascinating about yesterday's negotiation with caricom is the fact that key negotiators, so-called foreign negotiators outside the caricom countries, where u.s., france, canada, and mexico. that is problematic in itself because it was u.s., france, canada behind the coup d'état

that led us to where we are right now. how is it france of all places, all the way in the caribbean? the other part is these negotiations were happening -- the foreign governments that first in a secret meeting that did not include a haitian participant and later on let in the haitian participant. the foreign governments laid out the rules of engagement, which means you cannot be part of the discussion if you don't agree, first of all, to the foreign intervention that the u.s. is planning for haiti. that tells us what? the u.s. takes the decisions, that this is the status quo, and the same things that happened now will flare up again later. juan: what interest does the u.s. have in haiti and canada as well? >> people always ask why

is that the u.s. has such an interest in haiti. the u.s. has been trying to control haiti for very long time, since the late 1800s. haiti is a direct route through their to the panama canal for the u.s. to reach asia. the u.s. needs a strong force in order -- cuba, venezuela, and so on. they need haiti for cooperation and cheap labor because haiti has 12 mean people in the population, the largest country in caricom. haiti has been destabilized by the u.s. over and over again. i want to also say this mission people are calling a u.n. mission is not a u.n. mission,

but if people read the print of the resolution -- it means these forces can use extreme force by land, air, and see. the agreement says it is not officially a u.n. should, it is led by volunteer states. which is why blinken and the u.s. of the department of defense is adding -- that is why blinken is paying $300 billion for kenya to come to this. it is more precarious for haitian people. at least we had the demeanor of protection under a u.n. occupation when we had -- 2004-2017. everyone remembers what this occupation meant for haitians. it meant color that killed millions and -- cholera that

killed many and second millions, traditional killings and murders and sexual expectation of women and girls in haiti. for us what occupation means is this. these are the people under u.n. rules of engagement. this mission to haiti is not under u.n. rules of engagement. for people to say those running these negotiations to say the first requirement to be able to participate in the conversation is to allow this foreign force of kenyans who don't speak english or were known for their human rights abuses, to me, that is a very big problem. this reminds me of something i haitian diplomat and the early 1900s while haiti was also under occupation said god is too far in the united states to close.

amy: finally, is this going to allow henry to come back into the country now that he said he is planning to step down? what about the implications that henry was involved in the assassination of moise, having spoken many times to the men in the room with moise and the colombian assassin who identify this is the president for them to kill and had been to henry's house multiple times? was he implicated and do you think he will come back to haiti? >> i'm not sure henry will come back to haiti. he has become persona non grata. even though i think he is not been a main problem, it is the so-called international community running haiti. henry is implicated in the assassination, which is why we also have to ask why the u.s.

supported henry all these months despite the fact we all knew, they knew he was implicated in the assassination. what henry has to be concerned about is the u.s. sanctioning him and also later on charging him in this assassination. i am not sure this solves the problem that has been going on in haiti. it is being reported that the streets were, yesterday but i'm not sure people are going to take this. it demonstrates that haiti continues under the occupation of foreigners. one of the other conditions that working on behalf of the u.s. said was in addition -- for the u.s. to be at the negotiating table, have to accept the multinational corporations and except when there is an election board set up for the transition, that those negotiating cannot disagree with the result of the

election board. they set the parameters for them to choose the next leader of haiti. that means this problem will continue and there will be more flareups and in the next three months -- few months, years, if we don't stop it by its roots. the constant -- the denial of haitian sovereignty. amy: jemima pierre, thank you for being with us professor at , the social justice institute at the university of british columbia in canada and research associate at the university of johannesburg. just recently left ucla as a professor. next up, we go to rafah. back in 60 seconds. ♪ [music break]

amy: this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman with juan gonzalez. we turn now to gaza where al jazeera is reporting israeli forces have killed at least nine people who were waiting for aid in gaza city. 20 injured people were taken to the hospital as israel continues to restrict aid coming into gaza which is on the brink of famine. it is reporting one truck was

denied access to gaza because it contained scissors inside medical kits. unrwa head criticized the decision saying -- meanwhile, an aid ship down -- bound for gaza set sail with 200 tons of wood supply. the uae funded mission was organized by two aid groups, world central kitchen and open arms. inside gaza, palestinians marked the first day of ramadan. for more rafah we go directly to to yousef hammash advocacy , officer in gaza for the norwegian refugee council. can you explain what is happening on the ground right now?

talk about the issue of famine and hunger and what you think needs to happen. quote thank you for hosting me again and giving me the chance. unfortunately since we last spoke until now, nothing has changed. more families have been displaced by the ongoing bombardment all across gaza, the situation in rafah has deteriorated day by day. we are not able to fulfill the basic needs for families here. people are scattered in the streets, everywhere. it is unimaginable. we have the situation for the middle area and the north part of gaza which is -- families and children on the verge of famine post of over 25 people were killed from hunger. the situation in gaza is going into unclear.

we don't understand what is coming next. we have a daily basis of madness, violence, bombardment. unfortunately, so far we are not seeing any real intervention from outside so at least we could have a glimmer of hope. juan: yousef hammash, how do you respond to prime minister netanyahu's claim denying there is starvation and alleging it is groups under hamas in gaza that are preventing the delivery of aid? >> i worked for the refugee council and we operate on the ground, mainly in rafah because we don't have access to the northern part of gaza. we did not see any evidence related to these allegations. we're looking for open checkpoints.

israel has split it in three sections. we're talking about over half a million who are trapped dying to fulfill their children's basic needs. with the first day of ramadan yesterday. i was trying to understand they could have a piece of bread with tea. the situation in the south is also chaotic and getting worse every day. in the northern part of gaza, people are literally on the verge of famine. people are dying to find a piece of bread. it is unacceptable we start to put these allegations -- there is a need on the ground that is very clear. if you go on media outlets, social media, you will see what is going on. it is unrealistic and

unacceptable to ignore and deny there is a famine in the north. amy: i want to go to khalil abou ziyada, a palestinian currently in the al-shati camp in gaza. >> my feeling is that of a person who was displaced from his house. i am 71 years old and i have never experienced ramadan with this feeling. it is an awful feeling. at times like this during ramadan, i used to prepare the dining room to eat at sunset. but there is no food in i don't have any money to get food. amy: yousef hammash, the united states, president biden come has been authorizing the dropping of food -- airdropping it. five people were killed, crushed to death by a malfunctioning parachute that was carrying one of the food drops. and now has proposed this peer

where they say they will get food in, unclear how considering what israel has been doing. all of their ports of entry or crossings are closed and not allowing food to come in from rafah. why would the pie ber any different, especially given the u.s. continues to provide the bombs and ammunition that is dropped on the palestinians? >> that is what makes it you don't understand what is going on. first of all, any help to feed any family, one child is very welcome and much appreciated. but let's be realistic. spending -- airdropping, which is not efficient and you mentioned what happened that it

killed five people. why the united states didn't use its influence to his closest ally while it is weaponizing them and using that influence in a proper way to force them to impose on them to remove restriction on aid. it will be more simple, more realistic, more efficient if united states had pushed the israelis to allow aid trucks to go into the people of northern gaza and gaza city. the distance is half an hour by dry. why we need to spend all of that amount of effort building a seaport or airdropping while we have a realistic option put in front of us but there is some restriction by the israelis. that is what makes it unimaginable.

why are we going to that option we have different options on the ground and still in place running and functioning in place since almost the beginning of this chaos? the only issue we are facing in delivering the eight on the ground is the restriction the israelis put on gaza. juan: yousef hammash, how are you faring? your family and your own children under these conditions? what kind of aid do you have access to? >> in rafah, unfortunately, the prices are not affordable. there are some people who get some of the food items. there is kind of availability, but the inflation of prices make it unaffordable for the majority of families here. we are living day by day.

our cycle of life is one day. we fulfill our basic needs and then we will look for the next day. yesterday, i do search after my working hours to look for vegetables. there is 1.5 million in rafah and we are competing to find food for our families. amy: yousef hammash, we thank you so much for being with us, advocacy officer in gaza for the norwegian refugee council. joining us from rafah. this is democracy now! i'm amy goodman with juan gonzalez. as we continue to report on gaza, we're joined by francesca albanese, united nations special rapporteur on the occupied palestinian territory. welcome back to democracy now! joining us from tunis today. as you listen to the report on the ground in rafah and you here

also in addition to international groups, dozen israeli human rights organizations are demanding of the icj, the international justice, that israel abide by its demand, request -- you could explain whether it is legally binding -- to allow humanitarian aid into gaza. and netanyahu's denial there is a famine problem. >> thank you for having me back. it is very painful to listen to the testimony from gaza. as someone who has seen his tragedy unfolding, this catastrophe unfolding from the very beginning and knowing the situation in gaza was already desperate for many before october 7, i hear them in pain,

especially at a time that is holy like the ramadan. i am glad israeli were stations are asking -- organizations are asking. international law set clear obligation of warring parties to deliver aid and allow -- unimpeded passage of humanitarian aid to those in need. this is all the more serious in gaza. the international court of justice in january issued an order that request israel to take immediate and effective measures to enable the permission of urgently needed services to address the adverse

conditions of life. this has not happened. on the contrary, after january 26, we have seen on the one hand increasing fighting, increasing shelling and killing of civilians desperately gathering for aid. the bombing of convoys and airdropped food. although the airdropped food is dangerous as we have seen, killed people in gaza. it cannot deliver the aid to everyone in need. on the other hand, we have seen to liberally targeting of unrwa, the organization who can orderly deliver humanitarian aid and food. on top of the increasing restrictions of the aid. in the face of all of this, i certainly welcome the opening of humanitarian corridor between

cyprus and the gaza strip. at the same time, as was said before, the crossing between israel and gaza are not open. humanitarian access is not fully guaranteed. ultimately, the only way to save lives is to stop bombing the gaza strip. juan: francesca albanese, we have been hearing for weeks negotiations were proceeding. any day there would be a cease-fire. any day. at the days keep passing and the war continues. do you feel the united states and the western powers are doing enough to pressure israel on the issue of cease-fire? >> i've seen the united states and most western powers doing enough to continue the

situation. it is a mistrust today. certainly, not enough -- it is a monstrosity. certainly, not enough is being done to stop it. there is an order by icj that imposes not only on israel but heard states and these obligations are being violated. they refer back to the genocide convention. it is very critical what they're doing and not doing. what should be done is in armed embargo right now and sanctions because israel is not in compliance with the fiscal measures ordered by the icj. amy: francesca albanese, you know why kareem khan has not

brought netanyahu up on charges? he immediately did after putin invaded ukraine. i think something like 10,000 ukrainians, with a far larger population, have died and that in itself is horrific, but we're talking about 30,000 -- more than 30,000 palestinians. all agreed come overwhelmingly, civilians. and yet, the international criminal court does not bring charges. >> i cannot say with certainty because i don't know what his motives are. i what to mention he is diligently preparing arrest warrants. to be honest, for me it is

shocking there's been no effective move by the icc even before october. the continuous building in east jerusalem, the taking of land, the advancing of the annexation plan -- these were already war crimes. there is a delay in the situation of palestine that might also be -- political pressure on anyone operating -- i don't want to put the burden only on the icc. there is a clear double standard when it comes to palestine, so possibly across other parts of the south. clearly, the fact in ukraine we have had nearly 20% of the

population killed and in gaza 1.3% -- nearly 2% of the population killed and in gaza, 1.3% and no arrest warrants. clear waters that have targeted -- clear orders that have targeted. this is disappointing to say the least. amy: unrwa, the u.n. agency for palestinian refugees, although more than a dozen countries, 16, 17 countries stopped funding, canada and sweden have resumed. israel not presenting evidence that they said unrwa was involved with hamas. yet the united states has not. what is the effect of this? >> the effect is it undermines the up operations of unrwa.

there is no legal basis to do so so this only aggravates the responsibility of the united states. amy: francesca albanese, thank you for being with us united , nations special rapporteur on the occupied palestinian territory. speaking to us today from tunis. next up, as president biden pushes a bipartisan bill to crackdown on immigrants, a washington, d.c., group is reporting a death and two suicide attempt at the northwest detention center run by the private geo group. back in 20 seconds. ♪ [music break]

amy: this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman with juan gonzalez. as president biden pushes a bipartisan bill to crackdown on immigrants, we end today's show in tacoma, washington, where the advocacy group la resistencia is reporting there were two suicide attempts monday, just hours apart come at the northwest detention center. this comes less than a week after a 61-year-old man from trinidad and tobago died at the ice prison, identified as charles leo daniel.

he had been in detention for four years and was in solitary confinement when he was found unresponsive thursday morning. no cause of death has been determined. but according to la resistencia, witnesses who saw local authorities retrieve leo's body from the isolation unit described it as a potential suicide. this is christian dueñas, an immigrant from el salvador who's been detained at northwest for nearly two years. la resistencia said christian dueñas was also being held in isolation at the time of leo's death. >> when the alarm went off around 1045i was in the library and i was told someone in solitary confinement was found unresponsive. i was brought back to my cell and i saw a lot of people running everywhere. the police arrived in the fire department. i saw a man who is black appeared as if he had hung himself. >> where did you see him?

>> i saw him as do is being taken out. amy: a 2020 report by the university of washington's center for human rights found ice's own data shows the northwest detention center "detains people longer, on average, in solitary confinement than any other dedicated ice facility in the nation." meanwhile friday, a federal judge blocked washington state from enforcing most of the law intended to increase oversight at the for-profit detention center run by geo group, one of the largest in the country. for more, we are joined by maru mora villalpando, an immigrant rights activist and the co-founder of the advocacy group la resistencia. welcome back to democracy now! tell us about this latest news, the death last week, the two suicide attempts, in the situation right now at nwdc. >> good morning. yes, we are mourning.

we heard from christian. he called us to describe what happened in the segregation unit. we immediately mobilized. we also asked local journalists to find out what was going on. they confirmed to the tacoma police department what was told to us. we are kind of private investigators because we have to go in and try to get as much information as possible that we know ice isn't going to release. we send a press release 20 minutes ahead of them. then we get another couple of calls describing suicides. we had already scheduled a vigil last night. members of our team and supporters were outside the detention center at 7:00 p.m. and witnessed the tacoma police

department patrol cars leaving the detention center and right after the fire department and ambulance. a person attempted suicide around 6:00 p.m. was the one being transported to the hospital in the ambulance. this is a very dangerous place. we have set it for 10 years now. last week, exactly the date la resistencia was founded. in 10 years later, daniel was found -- mr. daniel was found dead in his detention cell. juan: what can you tell us about why this particular detention center holds people for so long in deportation proceedings and why the conditions there are -- seem to be so especially brutal? >> the detention center is owned

and operated by geo group. it opened in 2004 and expanded three times. once we started our fight, we were able to stop the expansion. we have been able to switch everything around how people saw these detention centers. but it is one of the most expensive in the country. ice and geo brag about their "dental chair" and medical service. we have exposed the opposite of what they brag about. being one of the most expensive detention centers and having a contract with a minimum guarantee of 1100 beds daily, that means you and i with our taxes will pay for at least 1100 beds daily regardless of the number of people. it is in their benefit to get as many people as possible and as

long as possible. we have seen people detained for over six years. you so mr. daniel was detained for four years, most of that time based on another witness that had been in segregation who saw mr. daniel also segregation for the past years. we have way too many people being detained. in segregation. this is because they have mental illnesses either because they ask for "protection were basically because people are organizing and speaking up. that is the case of christian dueñas. he was placed in segregation because he had been speaking up. and november last year when we finished the year with a hunger strike of 52 days straight, we noticed an increase of retaliation against those who spoke to us while in detention. geo cards, we can hear them in the back yelling if there

talking to la resistencia, their tablets will be taken away. a higher number days of solitary confinement. they also had the lowest bond rate in the country. only 3% of those that ask for bond are actually accepted and could possibly be released. this detention center has shown itself as one of the most repressive in the country. a person we saw yesterday, he told us he has been in many ice and geo facilities and so far this is the worst he has been at. amy: as we look at the conditions on the ground that you're describing, a suicide attempt also clearly, immigration is a political football. i want to go to katie britt

facing backlash over telling this highly misleading story during her much criticized response to president biden state of the union last week. >> when i took office, i took a different approach. i travel to the del rio center of texas. that is where i spoke to a woman who shared her story with me. she had been sex trafficked by the cartels starting at the age of 12. she told me not just that she was raped every day, but how many times a day she was raped. amy: she was using this example to attack biden. with the senator did not say is that this horrific situation described by this woman took place during the administration of president george w. bush, that the abuse took place in mexico, and drug cartels were not involved. the woman who senator britt

referenced, appeared on cnn and said this. >> yes, in fact i hardly ever cooperate with politicians because it seems to me they only want an image. they only want a photo. and that to me is not fair. i work as a spokesperson for many victims who have no voice, and i really would like them to be empathetic. all the governors and senators to be empathetic with the issue of human trafficking because there are millions of girls and boys who disappear all the time. people who are really trafficked and abused as she mentioned. i think she should first take into account this really happened before telling the story of that magnitude. amy: can you respond to how this is -- how this whole immigrant issue and the crisis immigrants face is being dealt with? >> we are being used.

we are being used either make money, to gain votes, as scapegoats. we are constantly used because we are one of the most vulnerable populations. we don't vote, right? we are not expected to vote. that is why you'll never see immigration reform ever happening really. it is about population control. it is about controlling black and brown bodies that are being forced to migrate in the first place. once we get here, our stories are stolen from us. they are being co-opted by cheap politicians that are there to mislead their base. that is why we see it again and again and again. all of these electoral times, it is déjà vu for us. we know they are going to use a story, very horrible story like this woman's story, or it could be someone who committed some sort of crime when in reality, what is going on is -- all of

these companies that make money off deportation and deportation are loving for these cheap politics to deviate from the real issue of what is going on. the same government created this crisis. we're in the midst of horrible situation and detention centers come at the border, in the countries where people need to flee because it is working for corporations and governments. we are tired being the political ponds. that is why we're are not waiting for the government. we had to save ourselves. that is what we work with people in detention. they call on la resistencia because they trust us. the people in the outside world will know what is going on inside. ice is trying to hide everything.

the purposefully did not mention mr. daniels was in segregation. there is so much to hide. there are so many angst these companies -- so many things these companies don't want the public to know. we won't be saved by the government. juan: you mentioned private flight companies. can you talk about what you been tracking about flights from seattle? >> they resumed last year in may. we have been observing flights every week. in the past three weeks, we have not been successful to observe almost anything because now these companies that allow these flights to come back and willingly started -- the airplane company contracts with,

they decided to switch the plane around. we are not able to see anymore. they are blocking our view. geo buses are blocking our view. they don't want us to see people handcuffed. amy: maru mora villalpando, we have to leave it there. thank you for being with us, the group la resistencia.