Liberation Obon at the Northwest Detention Center
A version of this article originally appeared in Pacific Citizen.
On Sunday, September 1, Tsuru for Solidarity hosted the Liberation Obon, a one-of-a-kind protest action at the Northwest Detention Center (NWDC) in Tacoma Washington. The action was planned and executed in partnership with longtime Shut Down NWDC movement leader La Resistencia, a grassroots organization led by undocumented immigrants working to end the detention of immigrants and stop deportations. In addition to a taiko performance and bon odori led by members of Kokon Taiko and other Seattle area taiko troupes (featuring JACL member Stan Shikuma), the Liberation Obon included a variety of other music and dance traditions from Mexican and Indigenous cultures including the Puyallup tribe.
At its peak attendance, over 300 protestors joined the peaceful direct action, which called for an end to immigrant detention in Tacoma. Speakers included Buddhist Reverends Ron Kobata, Dylan Matsumoto, and Patti Nakai, alongside a representative from Blaine United Methodists. Members of La Resistencia including founder Maru Mora Villalpando and individuals whose families are directly impacted by immigrant detention gave powerful testimony. Detainees were also able to call into the protest using Zoom to speak in real-time with those gathered in support of their release.
One highlight of the action was the silent procession from the entry gate to the exit gate of the prison. Led by Buddhist clergy and members of both Tsuru and La Resistencia, including the son of a Guatemalan immigrant currently held in detention at the NWDC, the procession walked along the length of the perimeter fence ringed with razor wire. Two strands of origami cranes were ceremoniously tied to the exit gate and individuals were able to pay their respects before rejoining the procession.
Tsuru’s involvement in the Shut Down NWDC campaign began in 2019 and has continued throughout the pandemic. The campaign has further intensified over the past year in the aftermath of the tragic death of Charles Leo Daniel, a citizen of Trinidad & Tobago who took his own life on March 7, 2024 after nearly four years of being held in solitary confinement. Notably, the United Nations has classified solitary confinement extending more than 15 consecutive days to be a form of torture. According to a 2020 report titled “Conditions at the NWDC” by the University of Washington Center for Human Rights, the Tacoma ICE facility holds people in solitary confinement longer on average than any other immigration detention center in the country.
Following Daniel’s death, La Resistencia began an encampment outside the center on March 12 which has continued to current day. The encampment initially began in solidarity with detainees who began a hunger strike after Daniel’s death, with members of La Resistencia and Tsuru joining the strike from outside the detention center. The Liberation Obon offered a much-needed morale boost to those who have been living in tents and trailers outside of the prison for nearly six months.
As the afternoon action continued, the tone of the protest gradually became more celebratory as a local taqueria came to feed the protestors, and members of the Puyallup tribe shared drumming and participatory circle dancing with the crowd. Hundreds of participants engaged in these and the bon odori dances. Tsuru members built a three-foot tall daruma statue and invited La Resistencia leaders to color in the first eye, signifying the wish to end immigrant detention. The event ended with a piñata and cumbia dancing before the participants parted ways. Although the fight to shut down the Northwest Detention Center is far from over, this action has injected new enthusiasm into the movement from a diverse chorus of voices.