Detainees on Hunger Strike Inside Angola Prison’s ICE Lockup

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A number of detainees in ICE custody had entered their 10^th day of hunger strike as of September 26 at an immigration detention center within Louisiana’s infamous Angola prison. At least 19 people were entering their fifth day on hunger strike as of September 25, though the latest reported numbers are down to four, as detailed in a press release by the National Immigration Project.

Those on strike at the ICE detention facility are demanding access to medical and mental health care, access to basic necessities like hygiene products and clean drinking water which are currently denied or absent, and visitation from ICE officers to raise concerns about the conditions inside. These are common demands from detainees across the torture-chamber ICE detention facilities.

ICE responded to the hunger strike in Angola by sending in riot police and putting the four striking individuals mentioned in the National Immigration Project press release in solitary confinement. The press release details that one detainee has been left without medical care for a hernia recommended months ago at another ICE detention facility, while another has been denied access to his walker and medications after an emergency hospital visit, relying on other detainees for mobility.

Authorities sought to conceal the detainees’ resistance rather than address their demands. Louisiana officials attempted to discredit the strike, with Corrections Secretary Gary Wescott denying its existence all together. Officials admitted over the weekend that 17 detainees had refused food but dismissed the action stating the “actions appear to have been sparked by false narratives in the media that put the idea in the detainees’ heads.”

Hunger strikes are not new to Angola prison. In 1971, prisoners at Angola launched a hunger strike led by the “Angola Three” to protest brutal conditions and abuse. The strike reportedly lasted over a month and marked a turning point in prisoner resistance to the horrible conditions at the prison, conditions which continue to this day as detailed in ACLU lawsuits against the prison’s widespread and egregious medical neglect, among other abuses.

The immigration detention facility was opened by the Trump administration at Angola’s former Camp J, called “the Dungeon” by prisoners as it was used for extended solitary confinement—which had been shut down in 2018 for its notorious abuses. It has now been dubbed “the Louisiana Lockup” or “Camp 57” after ultra-reactionary Louisiana governor Jeff Landry, who is Louisiana’s 57th governor.

Camp J was renovated after a declaration of a “state of emergency” from Governer Landry in July to address what he referred to as a lack of capacity to house prisoners at Louisiana state penitentiary, but then he handed it over to house ICE detainees instead.

“Camp 57” mirrors state-run facilities with likewise mocking names like “Alligator Alcatraz” or Nebraska’s “Cornhusker Clink”. These state partnerships allow these detention centers to circumvent federal laws while escalating repression against immigrant workers. In addition to the particular cases mentioned in the National Immigration Project press release, detainees report being denied prescription medications and lack of access to a law library or religious programming, which are guaranteed under federal detention standards. After Texas, Louisiana holds the second largest population of immigrant detainees in the country.

Detainees at Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz” ICE detention facility also went on hunger strike in July, showcasing the widespread nature of the egregious conditions at immigration detention centers and also how widespread is the people’s resistance.

Note: This article has been updated to correct the date of the initiation of the detainees’ hunger strike at “Alligator Alcatraz”.

Image: Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, and Deputy Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Madison Sheahan tour Louisiana State Penitentiary “Camp 57” in Angola, Louisiana, Sept. 3, 2025. DHS photo, Tia Dufour, Wikimedia Commons.

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