We are a group of volunteers who fight immigrant detention in New Mexico and elsewhere.  We do this by visiting immigrants in detention at Cibola County Correctional Center in Milan, NM (near Grants) and Torrance County Detention Facility in Estancia, NM and by writing to those in detention all over the country.  We advocate for those in immigrant detention and speak out against the human rights abuses that they face.

Join us in reminding those in detention that they are not forgotten.

VIDA Mission Statement:

VIDA builds human connections with people in ICE detention as an act of resistance against the unjust immigrant detention system.  We do this through in person visits, letter writing, and advocacy. Our work is part of a larger movement to shut down detention centers and end immigrant detention. We seek to raise awareness about the realities of immigrant detention.

VIDA core values:

1. We recognize the right to migration. Immigrant detention is an unjust response to human movement. Immigrants are integral to our communities.

2. We honor the humanity of the people we connect with, by listening to them and sharing stories. We recognize that listening is transformative.

3. We are inspired by the people that we meet through VIDA and honored to connect with them. Through mutual respect, storytelling, and human connection, we believe that joy and relationships foster strength and resilience.

4. “None of us are free until all of us are free.” - Fannie Lou Hamer

5. We know that a better world is possible. We are actively building those systems and practices to create that better world through intentional community building, cooperation, and creativity.