By Sydney Byerly
The Indiana Citizen
August 27, 2026
Activists calling on Gov. Mike Braun to end the state’s agreement to house federal immigration detainees at Miami Correctional Facility say they plan to hold rallies, prayer vigils, marches and teach-ins this weekend in more than 60 communities across Indiana.
The Weekend of Public Witness is part of a campaign launched earlier this year seeking to end U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention at the state prison in Bunker Hill, about 65 miles north of Indianapolis. It is being planned by the Indiana Organizing Project, which is funded by the California-based nonprofit Center for Empowered Politics Education Fund, and is being promoted by progressive organizations, including Indivisible Central Indiana.
Organizers say they want Braun, a Republican who is broadly supportive of President Donald Trump’s agenda, to terminate the state’s agreement with the federal government or, at minimum, decline to renew it when the two-year contract expires in September 2027.
Stuart Mora, executive director of the Indiana Organizing Project, said the goal is to bring attention to conditions at the facility and to the families affected when people are detained by ICE.
“We want to be in the small towns to have conversations with our neighbors about what is really happening at Miami Correctional,” Mora said. “We recognize that what is happening is not something that Hoosiers support, but most Hoosiers don’t know about.”
Braun’s office did not respond to The Indiana Citizen’s request for comment. The Indiana Department of Corrections didn’t answer questions about the facility but instead directed the Citizen to ICE.
Indiana entered into a two-year agreement with ICE in 2025 to make up to 1,000 beds available for federal immigration detainees at Miami Correctional Facility. The state approved $15.79 million in upgrades to the facility in connection with the agreement, which began Oct. 1, 2025, ICE was obligated to pay Indiana $291.24 per detainee per day. The contract covers adult men classified as medium-maximum security who are held for more than 72 hours.
Indiana Department of Correction Commissioner Lloyd Arnold told the State Budget Committee in September 2025 the arrangement would not cost state taxpayers and that the state would receive a higher per-detainee payment than the cost of housing a state prisoner. The state has received millions of dollars in federal payments since the agreement began, including $1.17 million for October 2025 and $3.86 million for November 2025.
But the financial arrangement has come under scrutiny as questions have emerged about federal reimbursements and the conditions at the facility.
IDOC’s 2025 annual report described the ICE agreement as an “unprecedented revenue stream” that allowed the agency to create new jobs and raise staff salaries. The report projected the agreement would generate $34 million to $53 million for Indiana in 2026.
By June, Indiana had received just over $20 million from the federal government against roughly $22 million in expenses, Arnold told the State Budget Committee. Asked whether the state was only approaching the break-even point because of the upfront costs, Arnold said, “I look at it, we’re already in the black.” He said the facility would have incurred some of the expenses regardless of the immigration detainees and expected the number of detainees and the state’s revenue to increase.
Earlier in the year, federal payments had fallen months behind. IDOC reported in May that Indiana had not been paid since November and had spent about $10 million accommodating detainees while awaiting reimbursement. State officials attributed the delay to the federal government’s review of reimbursement requests.
The campaign’s push to end the agreement also comes amid reported concerns about medical care and staffing at Miami Correctional Facility.
The campaign has also pointed to litigation involving a former detainee at Miami Correctional. In July, the ACLU of Indiana filed two lawsuits alleging that staff failed to provide Andranik Grigoryan with prescribed anti-seizure medication, causing him to suffer a severe seizure and head injury. The lawsuits further allege that, hours after the seizure, correctional officers pepper-sprayed him while he was still recovering from his injuries.
The ACLU had previously raised concerns about conditions at Miami Correctional after two ICE detainees died there less than two months apart earlier this year. The organization said the deaths raised questions about whether detainees were receiving adequate medical monitoring and timely treatment.
Those allegations have prompted calls for greater scrutiny of the facility. In July, Braun directed the Indiana Department of Correction to conduct a review of Miami Correctional Facility.
Roberts said she wants the review to be thorough and transparent.
“We really want Gov. Braun to do an honest investigation – an honest, thorough investigation of Miami Correctional Facility,” Roberts said.
She said she believes such a review would lead Braun to conclude that the state should end its contract with ICE. Mora echoed that sentiment.
“If it’s an honest investigation, then we don’t see any way government would not come to agree with us that this just can’t continue,” Mora said of the internal review.
The Weekend of Public Witness is the latest phase of a campaign that began in Indianapolis in February. Mora said the Indiana Organizing Project held a statewide day of action with 29 events in May.
This weekend’s effort has expanded to more than 60 events and locations across Indiana, according to organizers, ranging from prayer vigils and rallies to teach-ins, marches and other gatherings.
Events are planned in communities including Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Bloomington, Lafayette, Muncie, South Bend, Evansville, Richmond, Vincennes, Columbus, Fishers, Carmel, Greenwood and Tipton.
The weekend also includes events outside traditional protest settings. Organizers have scheduled a teach-in during Bluffton’s Moon Pie Mania Auto Show, a movement and meditation gathering at an Indianapolis fitness studio, a dance event at DanceWorks Indy and a “Singing Resistance Teach-In” at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Indianapolis.
Several events will be held in conjunction with religious services. Churches and faith communities are leading prayer vigils in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Columbus, Zionsville, South Bend, Jeffersonville and other communities. A virtual vigil hosted by the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ is scheduled to run from Friday morning through Sunday morning.
The weekend will also include events directly focused on Miami Correctional Facility. Organizers have scheduled a Saturday morning vigil near the facility in Bunker Hill, as well as gatherings in other communities intended to educate residents about Indiana’s role in federal immigration detention.
Fishers Resists founder Julie Roberts said the group plans to hold its event at Cumberland Park in Fishers from 7 to 8 p.m. Friday. Organizers plan to feature speakers and display 50 placards bearing the names of people who have died in ICE custody nationwide, Roberts said.
Roberts said the event is intended to show that the issue extends beyond Indianapolis and Miami Correctional Facility.
“We want to build community because we believe Indiana is strongest when Hoosiers look out for each other,” Roberts said. “We just want to invite everybody to come and stand together.”
Roberts said she views the event as a natural continuation of the organization’s efforts with the Hoosier Hospitality march early this month to show support for Hoosier immigrants and their families.
In Indianapolis, events include rallies in the International Marketplace area Friday evening, a solidarity march led by Rocky Ripple residents Saturday afternoon and a candlelight vigil in Irvington Saturday evening. Sunday events include a prayer vigil outside St. Luke’s United Methodist Church and a separate vigil organized by Common Ground Midtown and other faith communities.
Organizers say the events are intended to give participants different ways to engage with the issue, from learning about immigration detention to publicly expressing opposition to the state’s agreement with ICE.
Roberts said she believes such an investigation would lead Braun to conclude that the state should end the contract.
“Policies should not harm people,” she said. “Our policies should support its citizens, its people, and that is the opposite of what is happening right now.”
Mora said the campaign is intended to continue beyond this weekend. He said organizers are considering holding daily vigils outside Miami Correctional Facility throughout the Advent and Christmas season, from late November through early January.
“We see this as part of a campaign that has been building and will continue to grow,” Mora said.
Sydney Byerly is a political reporter who grew up in New Albany, Indiana. Before joining The Citizen, Sydney reported news for TheStatehouseFile.com and most recently managed and edited The Corydon Democrat & Clarion News in southern Indiana. She earned her bachelor’s in journalism at Franklin College’s Pulliam School of Journalism (‘Sco Griz!).
The Indiana Citizen is a nonpartisan, nonprofit platform dedicated to increasing the number of informed and engaged Hoosier citizens. We are operated by the Indiana Citizen Education Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) public charity. For questions about the story, contact Marilyn Odendahl at marilyn.odendahl@indianacitizen.org.
