You Would Think That This Is A Good Idea

Other states have special wings for trans prisoner that separate them from the general prison population. In Texas they are raising concerns over the special trans wing and there concerns are valid.

New detention center's transgender unit in Texas raises concerns over intentions
Prairieland immigration facility reserves 36 beds for transgender inmates who are more likely to face abuse, but advocates worry about isolation and quality of care.
The Guardian
By Tom Dart
Monday 6 February 2017

During the week of the inauguration of a president whose policies will lead to a sharp increase in migrant arrests, America’s newest immigrant detention centre opened in rural north Texas.

Known as Prairieland, it has an unusual feature designed to protect an especially vulnerable section of the population: a unit for transgender detainees. Some LGBT advocates, though, question whether holding transgender people in a detached pod in a remote location will do more harm than good.

The privately run centre 40 miles from Dallas stands as a monument to the Obama administration’s commitment to migrant detention, a practice it reinforced from 2014 as the southern border saw a surge in crossings by families and unaccompanied minors seeking to escape danger in troubled central American nations.

Many trans people are running away from violence and are seeking asylum here in the U.S.

Many of these detainees have fled to the US precisely because of their gender identity, only to find themselves in places where their risk of being sexually abused is significantly higher compared to cisgender heterosexual, gay, lesbian or bisexual detainees, according to the Human Rights Watch report.

There is a federal law, the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 which mandates prisons to provide a safe space and this I would guess is an easy way from them to follow the law.

Prairieland is the second facility in the country with a specialised transgender unit. Out of 612 beds, 36 are designated for transgender people. The only other ICE facility that houses transgender immigrants in separate dormitories is in the Los Angeles area, in space rented in the Santa Ana city jail. It is reportedly ending its deal with ICE in 2020.

ICE said last week there were 55 self-identified transgender people in detention across the country, representing about 0.13% of all detainees; none were yet in Prairieland.

Let’s warehouse them in a separate facility… out of sight, out of mind.