Nebraskans from across the state are expressing their discontent after Governor Jim Pillen announced plans last week to convert the Work Ethic Camp in the small town of McCook into a large-scale immigration detention facility.
A petition opposing the facility, curated by the local non-profit Nebraska Appleseed, garnered over 18,300 signatures from 386 Nebraska communities in about one week. It was delivered to Pillen on Thursday. The petition’s target was 15,000 names.
Signees were also welcome to leave a comment for the Governor:
“I came to Nebraska because I was excited for the amazing things this state stood for and was doing for its people,” wrote one Lincoln resident. “This detainment center is sickening and does not reflect Nebraskan values or the constitution of the United States. Shame on Jim Pillen for thinking we would turn on our neighbors like this.”
“Nebraskans and Nebraska resources should not participate in dividing families and in this detention center when these detention and deportation policies are not completely thought out have terrible detrimental consequences,” wrote another resident of Lincoln.
Appleseed shared a map of where petition signers reside:
Darcy Tromanhauser, Appleseed’s Immigrants & Communities Program Director, issued the following statement in response:
Nebraska is a state that welcomes our neighbors and values the contributions of local moms, dads, coworkers, neighbors, and friends.
The country’s immigration laws have not been meaningfully updated in nearly 40 years. This leaves friends, families, and neighbors vulnerable to immigration enforcement who have been unable to access stable immigration status despite their best efforts to navigate the nation’s outdated immigration laws.
In less than a week, more than 18,300 Nebraskans spoke with one voice to say this is not who we are. We are not a state that separates families and locks up and detains members of our communities based on long-outdated laws. We hope these many thousands of voices from Nebraskans throughout the state will encourage Governor Pillen to represent Nebraska values and oppose opening a cruel and harmful ICE detainment camp in our state.
Nebraskans want positive and updated immigration laws that support strong Nebraska communities, families, workforce needs, and our future – not punishment and military deployments.
Read more petition comments shared by Appleseed below.