Thousands of people have signed an open letter calling for the immediate closure of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Dilley, Texas, and dozens of well-known names in music, film and television are among them.
The petition, hosted on Change.org, is addressed to the federal government and to CoreCivic, the private company that operates the facility. It asks that the site be closed without delay, that detained children and families be returned to the homes and communities they were removed from, and that the practice of detaining children end.
The signatories include Madonna, Gracie Abrams, Ayo Edebiri, Keke Palmer, Lena Dunham, Elliot Page, Pedro Pascal, Jane Fonda, Javier Bardem, Michelle Williams, Kesha, John Legend, Diego Luna and Cynthia Nixon, alongside many others.
What the letter alleges
The letter describes conditions inside immigration detention that it says amount to trauma and neglect, and that fall short of basic standards of health, safety and human dignity. Children, it argues, are the most affected.
“Children belong in schools and on playgrounds, not in detention centers,” the letter reads. It goes on to say that closing the facility alone is not the end goal, and calls for transparency, accountability and structural reform to prevent similar treatment elsewhere in the country.
According to data compiled by NBC News, at least 46 people died in ICE custody between January 2025 and March 2026.
The wider context
Immigration enforcement has expanded sharply since President Donald Trump began his second term on January 20, 2025. In September 2025, NPR reported that the Supreme Court cleared the way for ICE agents to consider race as a factor when making immigration stops, a decision that drew criticism from civil rights groups.
Harper’s Bazaar has also reported on the deaths of Alex Pretti and Renée Good, both of whom died in connection with ICE operations.
Hollywood’s ongoing pushback
The Dilley petition is the latest in a run of public criticism from performers and artists. Bad Bunny, Sabrina Carpenter, Olivia Rodrigo, Lady Gaga, Mark Ruffalo and Bruce Springsteen have all spoken out against the administration’s immigration raids.
The message also made it onto awards season red carpets, where stars wore “ICE OUT” pins at the Golden Globes and the Grammys as a show of support for immigrants.
The campaign shows no sign of slowing.
