The Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in Central Falls has been controversial since it opened in 1993. The institution’s history includes — among other things — inmate escapes, detainee deaths, violent clashes between staff and outside protestors, and broken promises about financial benefits for Central Falls.
Today, the facility is actively used by the U.S. Marshals Service, and, more infamously, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which has held at least 100 detainees there since the start of Donald Trump’s second term.
In this session, local journalist Philip Eil — who is working on a book about the Wyatt — will recap the Wyatt’s history, discuss its many stakeholders (including Central Falls, the state of Rhode Island, the federal government, and detainees and their loved ones), and offer an update on recent local efforts to shut down the facility.
The program will be followed by a Q&A session.
The event is presented by the Sanctuary Committee at the First Unitarian Church of Providence.