This week Unlocking Detention has been ‘visiting’ Campsfield detention centre, run by Mitie, the largest single private provider of detention services to the Home Office. (In a first for our regular live Q&As) on Friday afternoon, Ben from Detention Action conducted a live Twitter Q&A with two friends currently detained in Campsfield – Christopher and Jose. You can recap the whole interview below:
3pm kick-off for today's live Q&A w/ Christopher & Jose (1st time #Unlocked16's interviewing 2 people at once). Both are detained Campsfield pic.twitter.com/r9pkcCKUrn
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Lots of questions ready for the #Unlocked16 Q & A on Friday! @Right_to_Remain @DetentionForum pic.twitter.com/spURxaiSXk
— René Cassin? (@Rene_Cassin) November 15, 2016
Such a powerful initiative. Last chance to ask questions for today's #Unlocked16 @DetentionForum live Q&A with a man detained at #Campsfield https://t.co/njn795H5qG
— Melanie BE Griffiths (@MBEGriffiths) November 18, 2016
Colossal thanks to @AsylumWelcome for helping put us in touch w/ Christopher (Jose so keen to join/speak-out, he just grabbed the phone!) pic.twitter.com/ONwZMYVdhc
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
First question for Christopher (C) & Jose (J) detained in Campsfield today comes from @SophieLashford & starts at the beginning..#Unlocked16 pic.twitter.com/PP4FcXzjxA
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: I knew nothing. I was picked up at a festival. They said they wanted to ask a few Qs. I first found out re. detention in the van there. https://t.co/oXGPjadQJG
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
C: I didn’t either. I went to sign. Have been doing that 8 years. First time I hear the word was when I came here. Campsfield. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/oXGPj9WfS8
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
No warning. No knowledge. No chance to say goodbye. How can this be justified? #Unlocked16 https://t.co/9QgY6xmrMM
— Marienna Pope-Weidemann (@MariennaPW) November 18, 2016
Another popular question about the social isolation of detention – this time from @SDVisitors (from last week – sorry its late!) #Unlocked16 pic.twitter.com/uBMXXyOstD
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
C: I told visitors not to come. It's too far. I speak to family once a day, maybe 1 minute, 2 minute, that’s all I can afford. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/rZkELg8w9q
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: My partner is coming, weekly, from London. It is £££. My sister is calling. And @AsylumWelcome coming makes big difference. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/rZkELgq7y0
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
In #detention the poor are punished twice over with isolation when families can't afford to visit & they can't afford to call #Unlocked16 https://t.co/M2HxZlL32p
— Right to Remain (@Right_to_Remain) November 18, 2016
Question for Christopher & Jose in Campsfield from @CrowtherMaddy @WagingPeaceUK #Unlocked16 #Time4aTimeLimit #TheseWallsMustFall pic.twitter.com/qkv743lxR6
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: Anything to do w/ healthcare is worst. This surprised me, I expected the other way round. Any music is the best part for me. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/g9StHypRd2
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
C: Yes, worst is medical. Some of them not professional. They treat like criminals. If we are talk, they say we are we arguing. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/g9StHy8fOs
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
This easy accusation of arguing reminds me of a @COMPAS_oxford piece I wrote on masculinity & emotion in detention: https://t.co/YIgLutZyTQ https://t.co/1zuUrJfSLd
— Melanie BE Griffiths (@MBEGriffiths) November 18, 2016
@DetentionForum Campsfield's website says detainees have access to sports/drama/education – how common are such activities & do they help?
— Fences&Frontiers ? (@FencesFrontiers) November 18, 2016
J: There is activities. I think if you know you are going to be here longer, maybe they help. But they don’t change your case… #Unlocked16 https://t.co/UUnpABNgUl
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
C: I think they help some people. I have a bad leg though so I can’t do so many things. But the art room helps me, for example. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/UUnpABNgUl
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
@DetentionForum A question for Chris and Jose #Unlocked16 pic.twitter.com/ANmTn0TudI
— Livi Elsmore (@liviels) November 18, 2016
C: It feels like a prison but people coming from other detentions say it is good. It is like military prisons I know from home. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/Sq6M3KEqJS
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
"It is like military prisons". Imagine what it's like being detained in the UK, espec if you're here escaping torture or unfair imprisonment https://t.co/dpBVdrPf5F
— Melanie BE Griffiths (@MBEGriffiths) November 18, 2016
J (1/2): We are surrounded by walls & metal fences.Then more barbed wire. Always they checks the rooms &there is lot of camera. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/Sq6M3KEqJS
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J (2/2): It is a psychological attack, not to stop escape. Basically, everywhere you face, you are told you don’t have freedom. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/Sq6M3KEqJS
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Good Q for C&J, both currently detained in Campsfield. What does it mean to complain re. something to the people locking you up? #Unlocked16 pic.twitter.com/LrGQFBTgFh
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: Even if you don’t trust you must stand up for what's wrong. If you don’t you're part of the problem. I say I trust it 50/50. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/da5sV73yYG
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
C: I don’t trust. If I complain about 1 officer he tells other. They don’t want to affect their side – it feels like Us vs Them. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/da5sV73yYG
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Q for Christopher & Jose for tomorrow's #Unlocked16 live Q&A from Campsfield. Due to start at 3pm. Send your question to @DetentionForum pic.twitter.com/y6ZA8pNb87
— Detention Action (@DetentionAction) November 17, 2016
C: I think 20-25% can understand. Others must get friends to translate. Some staff just ignore those who can’t speak English. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/77y7DmiX6O
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: I agree, 20-30%. But if you have no friend to translate, you can spend a long, long time here. These people are unprotected. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/77y7DmiX6O
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Question for Christopher & Jose, both currently detained in Campsfield, just a hop, skip & a jump from Oxford University…#Unlocked16 pic.twitter.com/iDW8xx1u57
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
C: The next corridor wall.
J: The fence. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/5JJvFngMBr— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Another question for Christopher & Jose for @DetentionForum #Unlocked16 live Q&A in Campsfield this Friday #MigrantSolidarity pic.twitter.com/BRKGZBs0Vl
— Detention Action (@DetentionAction) November 15, 2016
J (1/2): It is v.important. I have friends who made bail & they still check in on me. We've been through a hard times together. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/aTIkrU4ph6
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J (2/2): Because, y'know, these people see you through dark times, ups and downs…so you really see the character of people. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/aTIkrU4ph6
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Q for Christopher & Jose: How long have you been detained & for how long do you expect to be in Campsfield? #Unlocked16 #Time4aTimeLimit pic.twitter.com/e9CopIgwkI
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
C: I am here over 2 months. Maybe I think I will go soon. I am hoping. But I don’t know. No one is knowing this. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/kApvxVZ2AG
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: 3 months I'm here. Some people say ‘I will be here 6 months&then I’m out!’ This is rubbish, there is no law. You never know. #Unlcoked16 https://t.co/kApvxVZ2AG
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
.@DetentionForum the greatest cruelty of #detention, summed up in a few words. #time4atimelimit #Unlocked16
— ScotDetaineeVisitors (@SDVisitors) November 18, 2016
@DetentionForum reposting question for Friday's Q&A by @philmurwill pic.twitter.com/K22H0cem4H
— KalinaFitness (@KalinaShah) November 15, 2016
C: Depression, high blood pressure. I get tablets. Many people the same. I feel like when I was captured back in my country. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/z2H9bgptjn
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J (1/2): In a way it's making me stronger. I can’t let this situation beat me. Detention is designed to make you quit & say you will go back https://t.co/z2H9bgptjn
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J (2/2): As soon as I understand that, I am fighting. Sometimes I am depressed, it feels too much, but it's an ongoing situation #Unlocked16 https://t.co/z2H9bgptjn
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Q for Christopher & Jose, both detained in Campsfield, that taps into the theme of #Unlocked16 – the wider impact of detention pic.twitter.com/WJizcuw17k
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
C: My family is still in my country. They know I am here. They are worried. Very worried. So I tell them I am fine, no worries. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/8tHCeOA8GV
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: It makes my relationship w/ my partner stronger. We believe we have the right to be together, to love eachother, so we fight #Unlocked16 https://t.co/8tHCeOA8GV
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Another question for Christopher & Jose detained in Campsfield (from @ManchesterMiSol & @Right_to_Remain session few weeks ago) #Unlocked16 pic.twitter.com/Ipl2slQ12A
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
C: I am alone I have to accept. I have to make friends as best I can here. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/GiSlgTIT3C
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: I actually see this as small community. That's my way to cope. So I get involved, for my mental stability but also solidarity #Unlocked16 https://t.co/GiSlgTIT3C
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Please could you tell C & J how much Campsfield detainees are in the thoughts of the community outside. People was to help.
— Asylum Welcome ? (@AsylumWelcome) November 18, 2016
Question for #Unlocked16 Q&A wiith Mark detained in Harmondsworth #Trump #MigrantJustice #BuildTrustNotWalls pic.twitter.com/ohzv0wEQyb
— Detention Action (@DetentionAction) November 11, 2016
J (1/2): Everyone shocked, even the guards! People are scared re. the political situation. We see the Express & Daily Mail in the library… https://t.co/UwqzODhZ2a
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J (2/2): It is always the same…Brexit, Brexit, Brexit. Always blaming the migrants. Same with Trump. #Unlocked16 #MigrantSolidarity https://t.co/UwqzODzzTI
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
"We see the Daily Mail in the library" in immigration detention. Imagine how frightening that is following a #Trump victory #Unlocked16 https://t.co/LfkQAiP2zw
— Marienna Pope-Weidemann (@MariennaPW) November 18, 2016
C: My opinion hasn't changed so much. You must understand reality I come from. There, if you open your mouth, you get smashed. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/0beIVw8z9t
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: I feel like Home Office & politicians are making decisions in a personal way, not with the law. This I was not expecting. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/0beIVw8z9t
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
@DetentionAction Christopher & Jose, what gave you courage to speak out today & why must people know what detention is like? #Unlocked16
— Marienna Pope-Weidemann (@MariennaPW) November 18, 2016
J (1/2): When I arrived I wasn’t sure re. my rights. I wasn’t sure I had them to be honest. I said 'it is what it is'. But now I learn law.. https://t.co/UN3Kmrc2Z4
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J (2/2): Now I know if there's something not right I need to speak..if I don’t speak, I'm part of the problem, not the solution. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/UN3Kmrc2Z4
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
GOOD QUESTION from @Right_to_Remain & @ManchesterMiSol for Christopher & Jose #Time4aTimeLimit #Unlocked16 #DetentionInquiry pic.twitter.com/7hXIX6ejK3
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J (1/2): One, it is related to xenophobia. They want you out. They want you to know you are not welcome because you are foreign. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/SYDctbrJAk
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J (2/2): Two, I think it is a business. Taxpayers are spending money every day on us here. Private contractors are winning. #uncloked16 https://t.co/SYDctbrJAk
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Unfortunately we're living in a post Brexit world & they know they can continue to push insular racist inhumane policies & get away with it! https://t.co/pBEFNuAQde
— @acmogan (@acmogan) November 18, 2016
Question for Christopher & Jose, currently detained in Campsfield (via @MariennaPW) from the Infamous 'Charlie E.' #Unlocked16 pic.twitter.com/Ddzddfr3JB
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: To be a leader you can't just follow your own ambitions. You need to take best decisions for Everyone. Detention isn't that. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/OGcMQitwBr
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Jose addresses #TheresaMay straight from #Campsfield where she has him detained. Brilliant stuff. #JOSE4PM #TheseWallsMustFall #Unlocked16 https://t.co/qOvnw5JAI0
— Right to Remain (@Right_to_Remain) November 18, 2016
Question for Christopher & Jose, currently detained in Campsfield (via @MariennaPW) from the Infamous 'Rory' #Unlocked16 pic.twitter.com/NbA9qmI3z1
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
C: I would like to start up my own business…maybe a cornershop. I always like those in Britain. And i would speak to my family. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/ZbWZuNZVl8
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: Be with my partner. Walk in a park…Lots of stuff. Because now I understand what it means to not have my freedom. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/ZbWZuOhwcG
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
@DetentionForum @DetentionAction #Unlocked16 pic.twitter.com/Mv2zqFRPl5
— Tessa Hughes (@TessaMH1) November 18, 2016
C: Detention is too much. We do nothing wrong. It is…uncomfortable. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/1DMceibkEc
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J (1/2): It takes a lot for someone with freedom to fight for those without it. I thank those people. .#Unlocked16 https://t.co/1DMceibkEc
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J (2/2): One day, think about what would you do in this situation? How will you react? You never know when this will happen. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/1DMceibkEc
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
Final question for Christopher & Jose, detained in Campsfield. #Unlocked16 #Time4aTimeLimit #TheseWallsMustFall #Solidarity pic.twitter.com/fzkASgh4Wk
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
C: I keep trying to fight. I am confident. 'I can do it, I can do it' – it is always in my mind, I am trying to be positive. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/Cbe4DnQCOu
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
J: The fact I know that I have the right to be here & no-one can take that. Once you know the law, you understand you can fight. #Unlocked16 https://t.co/Cbe4Dnz1WW
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016
HUGE thank you to everyone who stayed the course during what was a long Q&A. And of course, special thanks to Christopher & Jose #Unlocked16
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 18, 2016