Author Archives: Ranit Mishori, Kathryn Hampton, Marsha Griffin, and Nancy E. Wang

About Ranit Mishori, Kathryn Hampton, Marsha Griffin, and Nancy E. Wang

Kathryn Hampton coordinates PHR’s Asylum Network Program, an initiative which recruits, trains, and supports a network of clinicians to provide forensic evaluations for asylum seekers and to advocate for human rights-based immigration policies. Hampton has 10 years of experience in human rights monitoring, analysis, and reporting. Prior to joining PHR, she worked for INGOs and international organizations in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Iraq, Turkey, and Ukraine. he has designed and implemented protection programming for displaced and conflict-affected populations with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the International Rescue Committee, World Vision, and the International Commission on Missing Persons. Hampton holds an MSt in International Human Rights Law at the University of Oxford.

Reporting detention-related harms

Community-based clinicians sometimes see patients who have been recently released from immigration detention. Those encounters can be challenging, especially when patients reveal health harms experienced while in detention. It is obviously critical that clinicians provide high-quality medical care and address any health issues potentially brought about or exacerbated by their detention history. But do they… Read More »

Broadband is a human right: the right to information and COVID-19 disparities

Understanding internet access through a human rights framework has been a goal of human rights advocates for years. But COVID-19 has brought the idea of “broadband as a human right” to the forefront as a necessary and urgent human need. A recent study exploring the Social Determinants of Health and COVID-19 mortality, found that individuals without… Read More »

In COVID-19 Response, ICE May Be Misusing a Common Disinfectant in Detention Facilities

The U.S. government is reportedly harming people held in immigration detention centers with its excessive use of a common disinfectant. According to reports by immigrant advocacy groups, HDQ Neutral disinfectant is being sprayed dozens of times per day in enclosed environments. This is resulting in concerning health symptoms among detained people. This potentially egregious practice further… Read More »

Spain, Belgium, and Others Are Releasing Immigrant Detainees During COVID-19. Why the United States Should, Too

May 6 heralded another grim milestone in the United States: the first COVID-19-related death of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainee, a 57-year-old man from El Salvador. Despite having high blood pressure and possibly diabetes, he had been denied release on bond by a judge. He continued to be held in Otay Mesa Detention… Read More »