INDIANAPOLIS — Leaders from LiveFree Indiana and other organizations gathered on Lafayette Road to launch the next step in the #KeepIndyHome campaign on Tuesday.
A few billboards, located throughout the city, urge those who pass to "call Sheriff Forestall to stop jailing immigrants."
"Fund our future— Don't force us apart," reads the billboard.
This comes as President Trump continues to crack down on immigration, using the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to conduct immigration raids across the country.
"We are sending a clear message, our jail is already in crisis, and the Sheriff's decision to support housing our neighbors for ICE is inhumane," said Joel Reichenbach of Indy Action Coalition in a news release.
The organizers took this opportunity to speak on the poor conditions of the jail, from bad drinking water to mistreatment of those incarcerated.
"As both an organizer and former employee in the release lobby of the jail, it's clear the facility is already in crisis with reports of poor medical care, bad drinking water, and mistreatment of folks who are incarcerated," said Dewayne Whitney of the Validus Movement in the news release. "Let's be clear, the jail is already a broken system, and the Sheriff, using it to house detainees for ICE, is purely to put profits over people."
The organizations are asking for Sheriff Forrestal to cancel the ICE contract, and are calling on Mayor Hogestt to step in.
"We now call Mayor Hogsett to honor this commitment and speak out, act boldly, and stand firm in his role as not only the elected Mayor of Indianapolis, but also in his role as the County Executive," said Rev Keion Jackson of the Black Church Coalition in the release.
You can find the billboards throughout the city at the following locations:
- 3115 Madison Avenue
- 5780 Sunnyside Road
- 3654 Lafayette Road
