Washington, May 18 (RHC)-- In the U.S., a new report by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) says Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, did almost nothing to prevent COVID-19 outbreaks inside immigrant jails and has even concealed the number of people in its custody hospitalized during the pandemic. 

A total of over 14,000 people have reportedly tested positive for COVID-19 while in ICE custody. Officially, nine people have died of COVID in ICE jails, but several others died shortly after their release.

This comes as over 20,000 immigrants are currently jailed by ICE — a jump from just under 15,000 people at the end of the Trump administration. 

In a letter signed by more than 30 House Democrats, Congressmember Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez writes: “We are in a moment of racial reckoning in this country, with communities across the country calling for an end to mass incarceration and racist policing.  It is time to end the carceral approach to immigration, which relies on these same flawed systems.”