Immigrant rights advocates and community organizations on Monday remembered and honored those who have died in custody of federal immigration authorities during a Day of the Dead vigil in Miramar.
The advocates reported that at least 56 people have died in ICE custody since President Donald Trump took office in January 2025 and launched his aggressive immigrant deportation plan. They said agents with ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection have killed 11 people in shootings.
"On Día de los Muertos, we gather to remember those we have lost and to honor the value of every human life,"
said Valeria Maldonado, Youth Organizer for Seeds Of Resistance. "Our traditions teach us that remembrance is an act of love, and that every person deserves dignity, care, and the chance to live freely with their family and community."
Said Guadalupe De La Cruz, Program Director for the American Friends Service Committee Florida Program, in a statement: "As [ICE] detention expands, so does the harm. No one should die in ICE custody. The lives of immigrants, children, and families are worth protecting."
In a statement posted on its website, ICE said "one of the agency's highest priorities is detained alien health care."
"Any death that occurs in ICE custody is a significant cause for concern," the agency says. "ICE prioritizes the health, safety and well-being of all aliens in its custody."
Monday's vigil was organized by the Circle of Protection at Miramar, the American Friends Service Committee, Detention Watch Network, The Worker's Circle, the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, and the Florida Immigrant Coalition.
The Associated Press, which has been tracking the deaths of ICE detainees in federal custody, said at least 58 have died since President Donald Trump returned to office in January 2025. That figure is slightly higher than the one cited by immigration advocates.
Immigrant advocates say the deaths are a sign that authorities are failing to properly oversee the detention of tens of thousands of immigrants swept up in the Trump administration's aggressive deportation strategy.
In Florida alone, at least nine individuals have died in ICE custody since January 2025, amid ongoing reports documenting severe overcrowding, unsanitary conditions, and medical neglect across state detention facilities, according to the immigration advocates.
Activist groups cited independent medical evaluations indicating that 95% of detention deaths were preventable with appropriate care.
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