Georgia detainees used video calls to report harsh conditions and alleged reprisals
Four detainees at the Folkston ICE Processing Center in Georgia used its video-calling system to describe harsh conditions and what they say is a dysfunctional immigration court system keeping people in custody for months or years. The video drew attention to the costs and limits detainees face when contacting people outside, and to concerns that they were punished for speaking out.
One detainee said workers are paid $1 a day, enough for a 10-minute phone call; the facility’s 60 to 70-person units reportedly share just three or four tablets. After the video appeared, an immigration lawyer said all four men had been placed in segregation; 45 detainees later signed an open letter and an estimated 73 began a hunger strike. Calls and messages use GettingOut, whose parent company settled a $4.23 million lawsuit over a data breach, while federal call-rate caps were raised by up to 83 per cent in 2025.
- Four Folkston detainees used video calls to publicise conditions.
- They were reportedly placed in segregation after the video.
- An estimated 73 detainees are on hunger strike.
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Folkston ICE Processing Center in Georgia holds people whilst their immigration cases are processed through the federal court system. Four detainees there recently used the facility's video-calling system to speak publicly about conditions they described as harsh and about lengthy delays in immigration court proceedings that keep people in custody for months or years.
According to their account, detainees work in the facility for $1 a day, an amount sufficient for roughly a 10-minute phone call, and large groups of 60 to 70 people share only three or four tablets for communications. Following the video's release, the four men were moved to segregation, and other detainees signed a letter of support and began a hunger strike.
Immigration detention in the United States raises ongoing questions about conditions and due process for non-citizens. This case highlights concerns about communication costs for detained people, access to legal help, and facility conditions, which have become more pressing with recent increases to federal phone call rates.
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The case for
Detainees documented serious deprivation: $1 per day for communication is prohibitively expensive, three tablets serve 70 people, and those who spoke out faced segregation immediately afterwards. This timing suggests the facility punishes rather than enables accountability. These conditions prevent detained people from accessing legal representation or maintaining outside support during indefinite detention.
The case against
Detention facilities operate under genuine financial and security constraints. Providing communication access incurs real costs that must be managed across limited budgets, and resource-sharing is standard operational practice. Segregation serves multiple legitimate facility management purposes and cannot be attributed solely to retaliation without fuller context about security assessments. The fundamental problem of extended detention stems from immigration court delays, not facility operations.
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Originally published by The Verge as “ICE detainees in Georgia used the facility’s video calling software to expose the conditions inside”.