More than 50 members of the Heart of Virginia and surrounding areas took part in a demonstration and protest Friday concerning the treatment of migrants and of the operation of immigration detention centers.

The demonstration was held at the Wilck’s Lake area. Following discussion, songs and representatives sharing stories of their or their families’ own immigration experiences, participants walked along the sidewalk on West Third Street, holding signs.

There was also a candle lighting and a moment of silence. Near the end of the vigil, demonstrators chanted “Close the camps! Close the camps!”

The Farmville protest was part of a network of protests held across the United States through a program called “Lights for Liberty.”

The purpose of the “Lights for Liberty” program is to protest the practice of immigration centers and poor conditions of facilities reported by national sources.

To view photos of the event, click here.

RECOUNTING EXPERIENCES

During the event, participants shared their stories of how they or their relatives immigrated to the United States and how the practice of detention centers echoes back to World War II-era concentration and internment camps.

Event organizer Doris Gelbman spoke about her father’s immigration experience and how it shaped her view on how those entering the United States or those seeking asylum should be treated. She also spoke about the importance that those in detention centers have appropriate legal representation.

Gelbman is not an immigration lawyer, but she practices law in Charlottesville. She said those detained may not be seeing proper legal protection, and said because those detained are put in immigration centers, they are often unable to make court dates for their initial charges. For example, if someone was arrested for a charge such as a DUI or speeding, was found not to be a documented citizen and was taken to the ICA, it could be likely the person would miss the court appointment for the speeding ticket, incurring another charge.

Farmville Police Department Chief A.Q. “Andy” Ellington said in a phone interview Monday that because the center is within the town limits, the Farmville Police Department is responsible for, when someone detained is release, transporting him or her from the center to the police department, and if the person has missed any court appointments, to the Piedmont Regional Jail.

At the jail, that person is held until he or she can be transported to any court appointment he or she may have missed due to being held at the detention center.

Ellington said the police department transported four people in the month of June, and nine people in the month of May.

Marc Huppert, of Georgia, said his father never spoke about his experience surviving Nazi reign during World War II, but that it had a profound impact on his father’s life. Learning about his father’s life through letters, Huppert said it also shaped his view on immigration.

“What’s going on now is just horrible,” Huppert said, noting that the vast majority of the audience could trace their lineage back to immigrants, that they were not Native Americans.

“This country was built by immigrants,” he said, showing a poster he held. One image was of the Auschwitz concentration camp, the other was of an immigration detention center believed to be in Texas. He encouraged action, saying that it was people who turned away that allowed the Holocaust to continue during World War II.

Larissa Epinoza encouraged people to speak and act for those who are afraid of facing the same fate as people in detention centers and who have worked for decades to gain citizenship.

One speaker recounted how, in the 1970s, she was detained at an airport during the Northern Ireland conflict and was held for a week with people who spent months being interrogated.

During the event, people sang songs and held discussions about how the community can respond or help those detained.

ABOUT THE FARMVILLE DETENTION CENTER

The Immigration Centers of America (ICA) Farmville Detention Center is a center where those who are considered to be in the United States illegally, or who have arrest charges, are held.

These centers, located around the United States and operated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have been the subjects of protests.

The center was built in 2010 and had a cost of $21 million. The registered agent of Immigration Centers of America-Farmville LLC is Russell Harper, managing member of Harper Associates, LLC based in Richmond.

The facility has the capacity for 650 people, but the exact amount of people in the facility fluctuates from day to day. The town confirmed in a past report that only men are at the facility. The town receives $1 a day for each person who is detained at the center.

Visitation to the Farmville Detention Center was announced to be closed in June due to a mumps outbreak, which affected those detained and employees.

Carissa F. Cutrell, a spokesperson for ICE, said in a statement that visitation remains closed at the Farmville Detention Center.

“As of July 11, ICE detainees who potentially have been exposed to or have a suspected or confirmed case of the mumps continue to be cohorted (separated from the general population) at Farmville Detention Center,” Cutrell said in the statement. “Visitation at the facility remains suspended, and the facility is not taking in any new detainees. There have been no reported mumps cases among detention center staff.”

Cutrell said there had been 39 mumps cases.