Letters from Dilley is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to bearing witness to the experience of children in ICE detention, and to mobilizing public pressure for their release.

We take our name from the Dilley, Texas, family detention center — one of the largest facilities holding children in the country, and the source of the letters featured on this site. But our concern isn't limited to Dilley. ICE has been rapidly expanding family detention nationwide, opening new facilities in communities across the country. Every day, hundreds more children are taken into custody, often for weeks or months at a time, cut off from school, friends, and routine medical care. We believe children's own words are the most powerful case for change, so we share their letters and drawings directly, in their own handwriting and voices, as a window into what's happening to kids in detention everywhere.

Where the letters come from

The letters featured on this site were gathered and first published by ProPublica, as part of its reporting on conditions inside the Dilley detention center.

Letters from Dilley is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Contributions are tax-deductible.