Immigration officials’ secret plans for new North Carolina detention centers, revealed by the ACLU, spark calls for transparency and public discourse
GREENSBORO, N.C. โ Federal immigration officials are considering potential plans to build new detention centers in North Carolina, including one in Greensboro, according to newly released documents obtained through litigation by the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina.
The heavily redacted, 98-page document shows U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is evaluating seven possible new immigration detention facilities nationwide. Two of the potential sites are in North Carolina โ one near the coast and another in Greensboro, about 90 minutes from Charlotte.
The ACLU of North Carolina says the Greensboro site under consideration is the former American Hebrew Academy, a large campus that previously had been slated to house migrant children before that plan was shut down in 2024.
The records were released after the ACLU and its affiliates filed a lawsuit in October, alleging ICE failed to respond to a Freedom of Information Act request seeking details about the agencyโs plans to expand detention capacity.
Michele Delgado, an attorney with the ACLU of North Carolina, said the lawsuit is part of a broader effort to force transparency from ICE.
โThe whole heart of this litigation is going to be trying to get real information from ICE so that we can have that transparency and tell the public what’s going on, be prepared for, potentially, a battle of ICE trying to open facilities in its community,โ Delgado said.ย
Delgado said the extent of the redactions makes it difficult to determine specifics about the proposed sites and whether some of the documents reference the same location multiple times. She said the ACLU plans to challenge the redactions in court.
โThereโs also other proposals that are more redacted, so itโs unclear if they are duplicates or if itโs just the Hebrew Academy,โ Delgado said. โThat’s what we pretty much know, but we want to know more, and we plan to challenge the redactions and hopefully get everyone some more information.โ
Greensboro officials say they have not been contacted by federal authorities about any plans to use the American Hebrew Academy property as a detention center.
โNo one has been in contact with the city about the Hebrew Academy property being used as a detention center,โ Greensboro Assistant City Manager Andrea Harrell said in a statement. โThere are a number of hurdles that would need to be overcome related to the fire code and zoning code.โ
Advocacy groups argue that any potential plans should not be developed without public knowledge.
โThis is just another example of how DHS agencies are being given a pass to act with a complete lack of transparency around their intentions,โ said Emanuel Gomez-Gonzalez of Siembra NC. โLocal legislators should not be learning about plans like this from leaked documents, FOIAโd documents, or rumors. There should be a much higher level of transparency.โ
ICE has not formally announced plans for a detention facility at the Greensboro site, and no timeline has been made public.
Contact Walker Lawson at wlawson@wcnc.com or follow him on Facebook, X, Instagram andย TikTok.
Download WCNC+ on your Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV or Samsung device, and stream the news that impacts you for free.
