The US government wants to buy a BC billionaire’s Virginia warehouse to turn it into an ICE facility
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The US Department of Homeland Security is in talks to buy a Virginia warehouse owned by British Columbia billionaire Jim Pattison, with plans to turn it into an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) processing facility.
In a January 21 letter officials in Hanover County, Va., the Department of Homeland Security shared its intent to “buy, take and renovate” nearly 550,000-square-foot Warehouse, owned by Jim Pattison Developments from 2022.
“As part of the work, ICE may make exterior and interior changes to the existing warehouse,” the letter said, including “the construction of holding and processing facilities.”
Pattison is a businessman and philanthropist who owns the Jim Pattison Group which covers a variety of sectors including real estate, automotive, media and retail.
The Jim Pattison Group and Jim Pattison Developments did not immediately return requests for comment.
Possible untilal caused anger and disapproval, inclg from the leader of the BC Green Party who wants to boycott Pattison’s Save-on-Foods grocery stores.
Canadian companies face criticism
Pattison is the latest Canadian company to face ite criticism over assoratings with ICE.
As The Globe and Mail reportedVancouver tech company Hootsuite received a $95,000 US pilot project with ICE in September that involves monitoring social media conversations about the immigration agency.
ICE too put up millions of dollars with a bulk order of 20 armored vehicles from Brampton, Roshel, Ont.-based defense manufacturer.
Amid an ICE immigration crackdown that saw federal agents shoot and kill two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis, Minn., one business ethics expert says companies must clarify where they draw the line on who they do business with, or risk employee morale and public perception.
“If I were a CEO, I wouldn’t want my name or my company’s name, my brand, to be associated with what’s happening in the United States right now,” said Chris MacDonald, an associate professor in the department of law and business at Toronto Metropolitan University.
“There’s an obvious ethical issue. There’s a question of right and wrong and whether it’s right for a company, or anyone, to be involved, even in a small way, in ongoing operations.”
People across Minnesota participated in an ‘economic boycott’ on Friday to protest immigration violence in parts of the state. Hundreds of businesses are closed on this day and their organizers have urged people not to work or go to school.
In a social media video that has been viewed more than 80,000 times on TikTok alone, BC Green Party leader Emily Lowan called on Pattison to cut ties with ICE and encouraged people to boycott his grocery stores.
“As we look at the increasing civil war in the United States, I think as Canadians we need to be clear about who is driving, who is involved in the problems we are facing and how we can step up and take real action,” said Lowan in an interview with CBC News.
Thousands of ICE officers have been deployed to the US, including in Minneapolis and Maine, under mass deportations. a campaign that met with criticism and resistance from local politicians and citizens and raised fears in immigrant communities.
Michael Berdan, an attorney and Hanover County resident involved in immigration advocacy, says he strongly opposes the idea of an ICE agency in his community and says it undermines Pattison’s efforts to help the community. Pattison is known for his major contributions to Canadian medical institutions.
“A deal that promotes the fear and family separation found in immigration detention would be very different from these policies,” he told CBC News.
“And I think that many of my neighbors, even if there is a political disagreement, will see that this is not the best way to use the region.”
The Hanover County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to discuss a potential purchase of the warehouse on Wednesday, Jan. 28. The Department of Homeland Security also invited several nations to participate in the consultation.
