Reps. Aguilar, Chu and Gomez Visit Hunger Strikers at Adelanto ICE Detention Center, Renew Calls for Facility Closure

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Rep. Pete Aguilar (CA-33), Rep. Judy Chu (CA-28) and Rep. Jimmy Gomez (CA-34) visited the Adelanto ICE Processing Center in San Bernardino County, California, to meet with detainees participating in an ongoing hunger strike and assess conditions inside one of the nation's most troubled immigration detention facilities.

The Members met with detainees who launched a hunger strike on May 19, 2026, to protest unsafe and inhumane living conditions inside Adelanto's Desert View Annex. Hunger strikers have demanded the removal of mold, access to clean drinking water, adequate food, and timely medical care for individuals with chronic health conditions. Detainees have also reported being forced to rely on expensive commissary purchases to supplement inadequate food provided by the facility and have organized an economic boycott in response.

Rep. Chu has conducted oversight of the Adelanto facility for more than a decade and has repeatedly called for its closure due to documented concerns regarding medical neglect, unsafe conditions, and detainee deaths.

"For more than a decade, I have called for the closure of Adelanto, and today's visit made clear why that call is as urgent as ever," said Rep. Chu. "The detainees we met with described horrific, unacceptable living conditions that no human being should ever have to endure. The problems at Adelanto are not new, and they are not isolated. They are the result of years of neglect that have continued despite repeated warnings, congressional oversight, and detainee deaths. Adelanto has had countless opportunities to change and has failed time and again. It is time to shut down this facility once and for all."

"The Trump administration has tried to block congressional oversight and hide the inhumane conditions at immigrant detention facilities like the Adelanto ICE Processing Center, but Democrats have fought for transparency to bring attention to what's happening behind closed doors," said Rep. Aguilar. "We heard the truth today from detainees about the dangerous, unsanitary and unlivable conditions at this facility, and what they've been subjected to is nothing short of cruel. House Democrats will keep fighting for accountability and we won't give ICE and Border Patrol another cent until their chaos and brutality are reined in and real reforms are in place."

"Today, I heard directly from detainees who say they have exhausted every other avenue to raise concerns about the conditions they face inside this facility," said Rep. Gomez. "Members of Congress have a responsibility to investigate these allegations and ensure the American people know what is happening inside. When people are willing to put their own health on the line just to be heard, that's a sign that something is deeply wrong. No one should have to starve themselves to get basic dignity, medical care, or have their concerns taken seriously."

Since the start of President Trump's second term, five people have died while in Adelanto custody or shortly after being transferred from the facility. In total, at least 13 people have died in connection with Adelanto since it opened, making it one of the deadliest ICE detention centers in the country. Over the years, detainees, advocates, medical professionals, and oversight officials have documented serious concerns at the facility, including delayed medical treatment, unsanitary conditions, inadequate access to hygiene products, and barriers to communicating with attorneys and family members.

The Adelanto facility is operated by GEO Group, a private prison contractor that receives millions of taxpayer dollars to detain immigrants. Similar protests have recently emerged at other GEO-operated detention centers, including Delaney Hall in Newark, New Jersey, where detainees have also engaged in hunger strikes over conditions and treatment.

The Members reiterated their commitment to conducting congressional oversight of immigration detention facilities and ensuring that all individuals in federal custody are treated with dignity and afforded adequate medical care, nutrition, sanitation, and access to legal representation.