WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (AZ-03), and Congresswoman Judy Chu (CA-27), Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, sent a letter to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to demand answers after reporting from The Arizona Luminaria revealed that CBP agents in the Yuma and Tucson Border Patrol Sectors are routinely confiscating and discarding Sikh turbans and other religious possessions belonging to asylum-seekers.

“We are greatly alarmed by continuing reports that people are being indiscriminately forced to give up their religious items and other possession–which are then trashed in many cases. According to multiple entities working directly with Sikh migrants, communication and cooperation with CBP officials specific to this issue has been difficult, making it even more urgent to address this situation as soon as possible,” the lawmakers wrote. 

“As recently as just a few days ago, Sikh migrants were still being mistreated at the southern border,” said Amrith Kaur Aakre (she/her), Sikh Coalition Legal Director. “We continue to demand a full accounting of how the seizure of turbans and other such misconduct still persists at various border entries and what steps will be taken by the Department of Homeland Security to ensure that it stops permanently. We deeply appreciate Reps. Grijalva, Castro, and Chu’s leadership in working to ensure both accountability and transparency around this issue.”

“When seizing migrants’ personal effects, including articles of faith like the Sikh turban, Border Patrol agents not only act with needless cruelty–they also violate the law and CBP’s own policies,” said Jonathan Blazer, Director of Border Strategies at the ACLU. “We have fought against this kind of mistreatment of migrants for years; it is clear that individual officers’ behavior, organizational policies, and workplace culture all need to change. To ensure change happens and sticks, engagement and oversight from concerned members of Congress is critical, and we appreciate Representatives Grijalva, Castro and Chu leading the way.”  

“Assurances that this conduct by CBP officers has been stopped are insufficient when we continue to receive reports of this mistreatment from our partners on the ground here in Arizona,” concluded Noah Schramm, Border Policy Strategist at the ACLU of Arizona. “Whether this is the result of policy failures, intentional misconduct, or both, our organizations’ urgent concerns on these issues remain unanswered. We are grateful to Representatives Grijalva, Castro and Chu for their advocacy on this and other issues concerning the rights of migrants at our southern border.” 

In the letter, lawmakers ask CBP to provide answers to the following questions by September 6, 2022. 

1. What actions has CBP taken to ensure agents are not confiscating and/or discarding religious items, including turbans, at all border entries?
2. If any recent guidance has been issued relevant to these issues, will those be immediately published in accordance with CBP’s transparency directive? 
3. What measures are in place to hold agents who violate CBP policy in relation to the issues outlined above accountable? 
4. What policies have been put in place to ensure that data related to the confiscation and discarding of religious items, including Sikh turbans, is tracked for further transparency and accountability? If no policies have been implemented, please provide an explanation as to why. 
5. What steps have been taken to investigate Border Patrol stations’ compliance with agency policies around seizure and/or forced disposal of migrants’ property more generally, including concerns raised by Members of Congress in a previous letter? 

Between January and July 2022, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Arizona and organizational partners documented 65 reports of headwear confiscation by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. While most involved turban confiscation, one report detailed the case of a Muslim woman whose hijab was confiscated. Additional reporting has detailed similar issues and additional religious freedom violations in the Tucson Border Patrol Sector. 

These confiscations stand in violation of CBP’s own policy, which requires agents to “remain cognizant of an individual’s religious beliefs while accomplishing an enforcement action in a dignified and respectful manner.” The confiscations also stand in potential violation of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which prohibits the government from interfering with religious exercise except in cases where the interference “(1) is in furtherance of a compelling governmental interest; and (2) is the least restrictive means of furthering that compelling governmental interest.” 

The full letter can be read here and below. 

Dear Commissioner Magnus,  

We are writing today to express our grave concerns regarding reports of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents in the Yuma and Tucson Sectors, and quite possibly other sectors as well, confiscating and discarding Sikh asylum-seekers’ religious items, including Sikh turbans. As noted by the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona, “In the last two months alone, [ACLU] organizational partners in Arizona have documented nearly 50 cases of asylees arriving from Yuma who reported that their religious headwear had been taken by CBP and never returned or replaced.” Subsequent reporting on the issue revealed additional cases arising in the Tucson Sector. Such actions constitute a violation of multiple Department of Homeland Security (DHS) policies and federal laws that protect religious freedom and an individual’s personal property while under custody. Therefore, CBP must immediately stop confiscating religious articles of faith, it must properly implement its policies as detailed under the 2015 CBP National Standards on Transport, Escort, Detention and Search (TEDS) and it must investigate any potential violations by agents of DHS’ policies or federal laws in all CBP facilities.  

Confiscating and discarding religious items, including Sikh turbans, is an egregious violation of an individual’s religious freedom and goes against the values of our nation. As you may be aware, many of the Sikh individuals making their way to the United States border are seeking asylum on the basis of religious persecution. According to the Sikh Coalition, “Sikhs are required to wear external articles of faith, such as a steel bracelet (kara), uncut hair and beards (kesh), and a turban (dastaar) to cover their hair. These articles of faith distinguish a Sikh, have deep spiritual significance, and are mandated by Sikhs’ religious traditions and should not be forcibly removed or discarded.” 

Unfortunately, the confiscation or forced disposal of individuals’ personal property, including religious items, is a long-standing issue that has become more prevalent over the past year. We are greatly alarmed by continuing reports that people are being indiscriminately forced to give up their religious items and other possession–which are then trashed in many cases. According to multiple entities working directly with Sikh migrants, communication and cooperation with CBP officials specific to this issue has been difficult, making it even more urgent to address this situation as soon as possible.  

As detailed under the 2015 CBP (TEDS) section §7.1, “operational offices are responsible for creating policies and procedures relating to the handling, retention, retrieval, and return of detainee personal property.” The policy further states that “all detainees’ personal property discovered during apprehension or processing and not deemed to be contraband will be safeguarded, itemized according to the operational office’s policies and procedures, and documented in the appropriate electronic system(s) of record.” 

In addition, TEDS policy states that, “Without compromising officer/agent safety, officers/ agents should remain cognizant of an individual’s religious beliefs while accomplishing an enforcement action in a dignified and respectful manner.” Therefore, CBP agents are not abiding by the agency’s own written policy.  

To that end, we request answers to the following questions:  

1. What actions has CBP taken to ensure agents are not confiscating and/or discarding religious items, including turbans, at all border entries?
2. If any recent guidance has been issued relevant to these issues, will those be immediately published in accordance with CBP’s transparency directive?
3. What measures are in place to hold agents who violate CBP policy in relation to the issues outlined above accountable?
4. What policies have been put in place to ensure that data related to the confiscation and discarding of religious items, including Sikh turbans, is tracked for further transparency and accountability? If no policies have been implemented, please provide an explanation as to why.
5. What steps have been taken to investigate Border Patrol stations’ compliance with agency policies around seizure and/or forced disposal of migrants’ property more generally, including concerns raised by Members of Congress in a previous letter?

We urge you to take these steps to remedy this situation as expeditiously as possible and to provide answers to our inquiries by September 6, 2022.