Rebecca Sharpless

Shackled: 92 Refugees Imprisoned on ICE Air by Rebecca Sharpless is the harrowing true story of Flight N225AX, an ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) aircraft that attempted to deport 92 people from the United States to Somalia in 2017. Told through the eyes of Sa’id Abdi Janale and Abdulahi Hassan Mohumed, two of the 92 passengers on board the flight. Sa’id Abdi Janale arrived in the United States with his mother and siblings at the age of 11. The family entered the country with legal immigration status, after they endured horrific violence in war-torn Somalia. Sa’id was facing deportation due to his involvement in criminal activity.  Abdulahi arrived at the United States/Mexican border seeking asylum and protection as a refugee as a young man. After his parents were killed in Somalia, Abdulahi escaped to South Africa before embarking on an arduous journey through South and Central America. After two years in detention his right to stay was declined.

The 92 men and women on Flight N225AX were shackled in chains on the aircraft for two days. The aircraft was grounded in Senegal and the passengers were immobilized in their seats. Unable to complete the journey, the plane was forced to return back to the United States. The passengers were treated like slaves, abused by staff and unable to use the bathroom facilities.

Based on extensive research and first-hand testimonies, the book describes the inhumane treatment the passengers experienced on board the flight, and their subsequent fight to stay in the United States. Readers are taken inside the legal battles that followed, as lawyers and advocacy groups sought to stop the deportations permanently.

Rebecca Sharpless meticulously reconstructs the events leading up to, and during the flight, and exposes the brutal reality of ICE’s deportation practices. She describes the passengers experiences in detail, and gives a much needed voice to those who survived the ordeal.   

It is a timely and sobering reminder of the inhumanity of the immigration system, and a call to action to prevent such tragedies in the future. An essential read for anyone interested in human rights, social justice and immigration policy.

It is a story that had to be told, and a story that needs to be heard.

Star rating: 5 Stars

Summary: A deeply moving and harrowing true story of 92 people, brutally confined and abused on a U.S deportation flight.