The chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus has released video and photos of migrant women being held at a border facility in Texas.
This moment captures what it’s like for women in CBP custody to share a cramped cell—some held for 50 days—for them to be denied showers for up to 15 days and life-saving medication. For some, it also means being separated from their children. This is El Paso Border Station #1. pic.twitter.com/OmCAlGxDt8
— Joaquin Castro (@JoaquinCastrotx) July 1, 2019
Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro posted the images after touring a station in El Paso. Women held at the facility were “crammed into a prison-like cell with one toilet, but no running water to drink from or wash their hands,” Castro tweeted. Some had been separated from their children and held for more than 50 days, he said.
Castro said the women asked lawmakers to take down their names, shown in the video, to “let everyone know they need help.” He said the women feared retribution.
Officials had asked lawmakers touring the facility to leave their cell phones behind. After the visit, Democrats decried the conditions inside.