Mohammed is a RAICES client from Yemen who has been in various forms of detention for 2.5 years precipitated initially by failing to identify himself upon entry — a rare federal charge that has been systematically leveraged to target asylum seekers from Muslim-majority countries.

The U.S. likely targeted Mohammed for being an Arab Muslim and has imprisoned him solely for the act of seeking political asylum.¹

Mohammed has initiated several attempts at a hunger strike over the past few weeks in an effort to gain his freedom — but rather than releasing him from detention, officials have threatened to obtain a court order to force-feed Mohammed.

The Department Homeland Security (DHS) has systematically targeted and vilified immigrants, asylum seekers, and refugees with practices rooted in fear-mongering, xenophobia, and violence — and Mohammed is yet another victim of an agency who believes immigrants are the enemy.

Tell the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas: Release Mohammed from Immigration Detention.

References:

1. Hamed Aleaziz, “Asylum-seekers from Muslim-majority countries disproportionately imprisoned at Texas Border,” Los Angeles Times, Aug. 31, 2023.