Shackled: 92 Refugees Imprisoned on ICE Air

In December 2017, U.S. immigration authorities shackled and abused 92 African refugees for two days while attempting to deport them to Somalia. Shackled tells the story of this harrowing failed deportation, the resulting class action litigation, and two men's search for safety in the United States over the course of three long years.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 232 pages
Publication date: 16 January 2024
Publisher: University of California Press

In December 2017, U.S. immigration authorities subjected 92 African refugees to inhumane treatment, shackling and abusing them for two days while attempting to deport them by plane to Somalia. When the national media uncovered the story, government officials lied about the events.

Shackled is a powerful documentary that tells the story of this harrowing failed deportation, the resulting class action litigation, and the two men's search for safety in the United States over the course of three long years. Through the firsthand accounts of Abdulahi and Said, immigration lawyer Rebecca A. Sharpless brings to life the harsh consequences of the U.S. deportation system and how racism and anti-Blackness operate within it. Sharpless follows the money that ICE funnels into local jails, private contractors, and charter jets, exposing a sprawling system of immigration enforcement that detains and abuses noncitizens on a massive scale. Woven with the wider context of Abdulahi's and Said's stories, this immigration odyssey reveals disturbing truths about Somalia, asylum, and the U.S. court system. Shackled will galvanize readers—attorneys, activists, policymakers, and scholars alike—to call out and dismantle this brutal infrastructure.

Weight: 332g
Dimension: 152 x 229 x 17 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520398658