End Cowlitz County Youth Detention Center’s Contract with ICE

Writing a Letter to the Editor

Letters to the editor are often one of the most commonly read parts of a newspaper. Not only do residents read local letters to the editor sections, elected officials often read them to keep track of what’s going on with their constituency. LTEs may even influence whether the media covers a topic and how they cover it.

With LTEs, quantity is important. The more LTEs a newspaper receives on a topic, the more likely they are to cover the topic. And the more likely some of our LTEs will get printed.

General Guidelines

• Keep it short: 250 words or less.

• Discuss only one issue.

• Use simple language, no ten cent words or run-on sentences.

• Make sure the issue is timely.

• Be polite and professional and follow the newspaper’s guidelines.

• Use facts, figures, and expert testimony whenever possible.

• Relate it to your neighborhood, town, or region--whatever locale the newspaper covers.

• Personalize the issue. How is this impacting real people?

• End with a call to action. For example, asking others to write LTEs too, or asking people to call or email elected officials.

• Identify yourself, including name and contact information. The newspaper may call to confirm you actually wrote the letter.

• When emailing the LTE to a publication, copy and paste it into the body of the email. Editors won’t open attachments.

• If you reference a piece the newspaper previously published, reference it by headline and date.

Template

To the Editor:

RE: headline & date of article you’re responding to, or topic you’re addressing

Paragraph 1: Who are you and why are you writing?

Paragraph 2: Explain the issue and share your perspective.

Paragraph 3: State your opinion or solution.

Paragraph 4: Call to Action

Sincerely,

Your Name

Organizational Affiliation (if any)

City, State

Date

Email and Phone Number

Example

To the Editor:

RE: Cowlitz County’s contract with ICE

My name is Jane Smith, and I’m a parent of two teenagers living in Kelso, Washington. 2020 has been a difficult year, and now more than ever children deserve to be safe at home with their families. That is why I support ending Cowlitz County’s contract with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  

Cowlitz County is the last county in the U.S. that still has a contract with ICE for immigrant youth detention. Around the world, experts and leaders agree that detention is incredibly harmful to children and youth. ICE separates children from their families, isolates them in cells, and restricts them from going outside, all of which cause toxic stress. The brains of children and teenagers are still developing, and research shows this kind of stress damages their mental and physical health long-term.

As a parent, I shudder to imagine my children locked in cells alone for days, not seeing the sun or sky, punished for showing reasonable emotions like fear or anger. I know my community can do better for these kids. I urge Cowlitz County to end this contract with ICE immediately.

Please join me in contacting the Cowlitz County Commissioners and Superior Court Judges to demand they end the contract.

Jane Smith

Kelso, Washington

November 30, 2020

jsmith@gmail.com, 999-999-9999

Suggested Talking Points & Calls to Action

• This is a matter of human compassion. Everyone deserves respect and dignity.

• Cowlitz County is the last county in the United States that still has a contract with ICE for immigrant youth detention.

• The Convention on the Rights of the Child, which every country in the world except the U.S. has signed, says children should never be detained for reasons related to their migration status, and all governments should swiftly and completely end the immigration detention of children.

• Why are we horrified by children in cages on the U.S.-Mexico border, but not children in cages in our own community? Do we want our county to be a cog in an unjust machine?

• Cowlitz County is putting financial profit ahead of childrens’ physical and mental health. The county receives $170 per day per child. We are literally taking money from ICE to harm children.

• ICE is notoriously secretive and unaccountable to any standards. This secrecy allows them to detain children indefinitely, far from their communities.

• ICE neglects the basic mental health and social development needs of children. They separate children from their families, isolate them in cells, and restrict them from going outside, all of which cause toxic stress.

• The brains of children and teenagers are still developing. This kind of toxic stress in adolescence leads to higher rates of cancer and heart attacks, as well as greater risk of alcoholism and suicide.

• Even brief periods of isolation can cause serious and long-lasting harm to children and youth.  

• The U.N. has found that solitary confinement constitutes torture when applied to juveniles.

• From the moment someone is put in immigration detention, their health, both mental and physical, begins to deteriorate -- lives are in jeopardy in immigration detention.

• People locked up in immigration detention are extremely vulnerable to the spread of infectious disease due to deprivation of liberty, deteriorating health while in detention, and a track record of inadequate medical care.

• The dangerous and deadly effects of coronavirus are exacerbated in confinement, where people are often malnourished and denied information on coronavirus prevention. We know that in times of crisis, the already deplorable conditions inside detention worsen.

• We are all in this together. This is a global pandemic that impacts people all over the world and demonstrates our interconnectedness. And it is the consensus of public health officials that it is safer for our collective health for people to be treated in community rather than in a detention center, jail or prison.

• Kids should be at home, especially during a pandemic.

• As a community, we can do better for these kids. We can demand that Cowlitz County end their contract with ICE and release these kids to their families and communities.

Calls to Action

• Contact the Cowlitz County Superior Court Judges and demand they terminate Cowlitz County’s contract with ICE immediately.

• Write a Letter to the Editor to your local newspaper to spread the word about the harm this contract causes.

• Attend a Cowlitz County Commissioner meeting and demand an end to this contract during the public comment period.

Where Should I Submit my Letter?

The Daily News - Cowlitz County - 175 word limit

https://tdn.com/forms/contact/letter_to_the_editor/

The Oregonian - Oregon and SW Washington - 250 word limit

Guidelines: https://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/page/how_do_i_write_a_letter_to_the.html

Email: letters@oregonian.com

The Seattle Times - Pacific Northwest - 200 word limit

Guidelines: https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/how-to-send-us-a-letter-or-op-ed/