The humanitarian crisis posed by the spread of COVID-19 in immigration detention facilities in California has had disastrous consequences for those detained in these facilities, as well as neighboring communities. The American Medical Association has recently adopted a policy in support of improved health measures of prioritizing vaccine access to vulnerable individuals in immigrant detention.

It is California's moral obligation to vaccinate the community members currently being held in the eight immigrant detention facilities, as their lives are literally at stake. Too many of our friends, family, and community members have died because of the conditions of these facilities, both before and during this pandemic. It is essential that we pressure Gov. Gavin Newsom to do everything in his power to prioritize the health and safety of people in detention centers and include them in the initial phase of vaccine distribution.