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FEB 5, 2026
Amid increased ICE enforcement, SALDEF deepened its advocacy on behalf of Sikh detainees nationwide. SALDEF joined more than 500 organizations in an ACLU-led letter and engaged in direct congressional advocacy urging lawmakers to oppose expanded funding for ICE and CBP. In parallel, SALDEF expanded on-the-ground outreach to detention centers to ensure Sikh detainees could access critical resources and ensure their religious accommodations are met.
Donor support enabled SALDEF to work directly with the Miami Correctional Facility in Indiana, where numerous Sikh detainees were being denied core religious accommodations, including access to turbans. Through this support, SALDEF secured and provided dastaars and keskis for detainees and shared educational materials with facility staff outlining Sikh religious requirements. Similarly, donor contributions made it possible for SALDEF to provide dastaars and gutke to approximately 100 Sikh detainees at the California City Detention Center.
Building on these efforts, SALDEF’s Outreach and Policy teams developed and shared a comprehensive religious accommodation guide for detention facility chaplains, helping institutional staff better understand and meet the needs of Sikh detainees. Donor generosity also made direct family care possible. After one individual was reunited with their family, they shared fears of retaliation that prevented them from speaking publicly about their experience, which they described as traumatic. In response, SALDEF was able to connect them with pro bono, culturally competent mental health support from a Punjabi health practitioner—ensuring healing and care continued beyond detention.
Updates from Defending Dignity for Detainees’s efforts, posted on a regular basis.
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