Kristina Varganova

Media @Kennedy_HRC | Ex @HRW, @WFP | Иногда по-русски | Views are my own. @SyracuseU and @NYUniversity alumna, Uzbekistan native 🇺🇿☕️

[Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center @Kennedy_HRC]

Anti-immigrant and anti-Latino rhetoric from government officials has fueled undeniable racial hatred and violence in the U.S., including the 2019 mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, where a gunman killed 22 people at a Walmart after targeting “Mexicans” and citing President Trump’s rhetoric and policies as inspiration.

There has been a 239% surge in anti-Latino hate crimes in the U.S. from 2015 to 2025. And that's according to FBI's own analysis.

That's why we're bringing Oswaldo's case before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. We'll be sharing a list of action items in the coming days. 🔗 In the meantime, learn more about the case: https://t.co/VM7IUaLsSV

[Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center @Kennedy_HRC]

Oswaldo Marcelo Lucero, an Ecuadorian immigrant, was killed in 2008 by a group of teens who called themselves the Caucasian Crew, engaging in a series of targeted assaults against Latinos in Suffolk County, New York.

Since Oswaldo's murder, anti-immigrant and anti-Latino propaganda from government officials has fueled a surge in racial hatred and anti-Latino violence. Numerous federal and local law enforcement officials have also abandoned their obligations to respect and protect the safety of all civilians, regardless of race or ethnicity.

On August 6, 2026, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights will hear our case on how the U.S. government has fostered a climate of discrimination and violence against Latinos in the U.S.

🔗 Learn more about the case: https://t.co/1xr1O42rK2

[Kerry Kennedy @KerryKennedyRFK]

Last April, we traveled to El Salvador to meet our ten clients who had been detained there. As expected, we were denied access to both CECOT and the Centro Industrial Penitenciario in Santa Ana. The stories we heard from people previously held in these jails were horrifying. One man we met weighed 200 pounds before his detention. By the time he was released, he weighed only 108 pounds.

A year later, our ten clients, along with more than 200 other Venezuelans kidnapped from our streets and sent to El Salvador, have been released. Yet no one has been held accountable for what they endured. They told us that while detained, they were tortured, starved, and brutally beaten. One man said a guard beat him so severely that his jaw was dislocated. Many others reported sexual abuse.

None of our clients were afforded due process prior to their deportation. One was selected by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) for resettlement and family reunification in the U.S. He completed all formalities, including medical and criminal background checks, and entered the U.S. in September 2024 through the Human Mobility Program. Yet the Trump administration still targeted him under false pretenses and sent him into torture for nearly four months.

We cannot let these stories be forgotten. The secret agreement between the U.S. and El Salvador is still in place. This means that the U.S. government could kidnap anyone off our streets and send them to El Salvador once again without any real consequences. In June 2025, we sued to stop this illegal agreement from ever being used again.

More information: https://t.co/Bj0OoNYXuu

[Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center @Kennedy_HRC]

Under U.S. law, unaccompanied immigrant children are entitled to age-appropriate care while their cases move through the courts. But that’s not the reality.

KHRC, @NIPNLG, and @ACLUofLouisiana have documented children being locked in adult ICE jails after being coerced into false confessions that they were adults, having their birth certificates destroyed, and being subjected to racially discriminatory pseudo-scientific age assessments.

We’re now suing the government to expose and stop its unlawful age determination policies and practices.

🔗 Learn more: https://t.co/6evIKq87KC

[Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center @Kennedy_HRC]

In March 2025, a group of 250+ Venezuelans were unlawfully disappeared to El Salvador. In the four months that followed, they were trapped between three authoritarian regimes: the Trump administration’s brutal immigration machinery; Bukele's torturous carceral system; and, at the time, Maduro's dictatorship.

Most of these people, including our ten clients, fled Venezuela out of fear of persecution and entered the U.S. after completing all necessary background and medical checks. But instead of protection, the Trump administration sent them into torture and forced them back into the very danger they escaped.

[Kerry Kennedy @KerryKennedyRFK]

ICE is not above the law. Reminder to this administration: no one is.
https://t.co/s1tn5cKQGn

[Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center @Kennedy_HRC]

(1/4) @BLaw's new shocking investigation into “The Wrap” linked 41 deaths to the full-body restraint used by police, jail staff, and ICE agents across the US. Nearly half of those deaths were ruled homicides by medical examiners.
https://t.co/UM7cv9ECTR

[Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center @Kennedy_HRC]

(3/4) In 32 of those cases, officers failed to follow the manufacturer’s own safety instructions. Body-camera footage shows officers ignoring repeated pleas for help: “I can’t breathe.” “You’re suffocating me.” “Mommy, Daddy… help me.”

[Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center @Kennedy_HRC]

(4/4) One of our clients was left partially disabled after ICE placed him in The Wrap during an hours-long deportation flight. "There was no justification for the use of this device. None of our clients were resisting arrest. They were simply asserting their rights as part of their deportation proceedings," said Sarah Decker, our US Sr. Staff Attorney. More information ⬇️.
https://t.co/U8SH4KKfkR

[Kerry Kennedy @KerryKennedyRFK]

I’ve been working on human rights issues for 45 years, and all around the world, the first target of autocrats is always free speech. That’s what’s happening in our country right now, and it’s the most dangerous thing that can happen in a democracy. This is why we’re proud to honor Stephen Colbert at our Gala this December. Thank you @OutFrontCNN for having me on last night!

[Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center @Kennedy_HRC]

(1/3) A @WIRED investigation uncovered a spike in 911 calls from 10 of the nation’s largest immigration detention centers, many involving life-threatening emergencies.

[Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center @Kennedy_HRC]

(2/3) Our VP of U.S. Advocacy and Litigation, Anthony Enriquez, told @WIRED that “the conditions of confinement in detention are so brutal, that people have attempted suicide while waiting for their day in court.”

He highlighted that the decision to place these centers in remote, hard-to-reach locations, far from family, legal counsel, and community support, is no accident. The volume and urgency of 911 calls, he said, reflect a system built not just to isolate, but to endanger.

[Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center @Kennedy_HRC]

(3/3) At least 60% of the facilities reported severe pregnancy complications, suicide attempts, or sexual assault allegations, pointing to a deepening crisis behind closed doors.
https://t.co/FQvJht5poo

[Prem Thakker @prem_thakker]

Rümeysa Öztürk officially freed from ICE detention.

(Photo from Rümeysa’s legal team)

[Kerry Kennedy @KerryKennedyRFK]

Yesterday, we traveled to one of the main detention centers in Mariona, El Salvador, but unsurprisingly, access was denied. A prison guard confirmed that nobody has been allowed to enter any of the detention centers, not even family members. They also confirmed that detainees are not allowed to make sporadic phone calls to their family members.

We also met with victims of human rights abuses, including several men who were detained for over a year under the exception regime, and who still have other family members inside the prisons. They were fishermen, peasants, ordinary and hardworking individuals who were taken by the police and thrown in prison without any proper hearings, access to their lawyers or their families, and who shared with us the torture and inhumane conditions they suffered and witnessed in the different detention centers they were held in.

While we formally requested access to CECOT, where ten of our Venezuelan clients are detained, and to the Centro Industrial Penitenciario in Santa Ana, where Kilmar Abrego Garcia is detained, the Salvadorian authorities have not responded to our requests.

[Kerry Kennedy @KerryKennedyRFK]

We’re here in San Salvador, El Salvador, where at least 288 people have been kidnapped off the streets of the United States and flown to a foreign country, and are now being held in detention centers and prisons.

These are some of the most notorious detention centers and prisons in the world, known for torture.

I will be sharing updates from our trip here and on @RFKHumanRights’ channel.

[Steve Rosenberg @BBCSteveR]

Alexei Navalny’s grave in Moscow’s Borisovskoye Cemetery this morning. One year ago today Russia’s most prominent opposition figure & the Kremlin’s most vocal critic died in a remote penal colony.

[Kerry Kennedy @KerryKennedyRFK]

“Bobby Kennedy is one of my true political heroes. I love and miss him dearly.” - President Joe Biden.

Thank you, @POTUS, for this extraordinary honor. Today, my father was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. This recognition is more than a tribute to his remarkable legacy—it is a celebration of the enduring values he cherished: justice, compassion, and the belief in the power of every individual to make a meaningful difference.

My father firmly believed that true change begins in the heart. He understood that while the fight for equality and human dignity is never easy, it is always worth it. His vision for a more just and peaceful world was not just a dream but a call to action—urging each of us to stand up, speak out, and live with purpose.

This award also honors the work of @RFKHumanRights and everyone who continues his mission. Together, we are carrying forward his fight, transforming his vision into tangible progress. 💙

Thank you, President Biden, and to all who honor his legacy and keep his spirit alive. My father’s light shines on in the hearts of those who knew him and in the work we continue every day.

[Alex Shephard @alex_shephard]

listing “mass deportation” as a housing proposal is literally fascistic

[Kenneth Roth @KenRoth]

When Trump has to reach for the endorsement of the autocratic Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orban, you know he’s in trouble.