Madonna, Gracie Abrams, John Legend & More Stars Call for ‘Immediate Closure’ of ICE Detention Center

Madonna, Gracie Abrams, John Legend and dozens more stars are calling for the immediate closure of an ICE Detention Center in Dilley, Texas, banding together to sign an open letter posted Monday (March 30) on Change.com.

In the plea — also endorsed by Billy Porter, Brandi Carlile, Darren Criss, the Indigo Girls, Kesha, King Princess, Lance Bass, MUNA, Sara Bareilles and others — the signatories begin by emphasizing, “No child should be locked in an immigration detention center.”

“We, the undersigned, call for the immediate closure of the Dilley Immigration Processing Center, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) family detention center in Texas, and an end to the detention of children and families,” the statement continues. “Children held in immigration detention endure trauma, neglect and conditions that violate basic standards of health, safety, dignity and human rights.”

The letter goes on to stress “the harms of detaining children,” referencing court filings that “have included refusals to provide clean water, rotten food contaminated with worms, dangerous medical neglect, sleep deprivation, denial of legal counsel, the separation of children from their families, and retaliation against families protesting the inhumane conditions” as examples of mistreatment of detainees.

“Children belong in schools and on playgrounds, not in detention centers,” it adds. “We urge the federal government and CoreCivic to close the Dilley facility immediately, return children and families to the homes and communities they were taken from and to end child imprisonment now.”

Billboard has reached out to the DHS for comment.

The petition is currently open for anyone to sign, at press time boasting more than 4,000 signatures. The facility in Dilley has become a holding center for a majority of parents and children detained by ICE, according to NBC News. Across the board, the Trump administration is estimated to have taken more than 2,300 children into custody with their parents so far during his first year back in office.

The letter signed by various celebrities marks one of many ways some politically outspoken stars have spoken out against the actions of ICE since the beginning of Donald Trump’s second presidency, which has been marked by mass deportations and aggressive raids in immigrant communities. Last year, artists such as Tyler, the Creator and Olivia Rodrigo slammed ICE’s operation in Los Angeles, and in January, numerous A-listers condemned the agency’s presence in Minneapolis and the fatal shootings of two Minnesotans at the hands of ICE officers.