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February 1, 2026

2 entries on this date.

Minnesota Star Tribune investigation revealed ICE held Whipple detainees in overcrowded cells without bedding, medical care, or menstrual products

A Minnesota Star Tribune investigation, published February 1, 2026 and based on interviews with 30 detainees, attorneys, and advocates plus a review of nearly 200 federal court records, found that ICE and DHS held immigration detainees at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis in overcrowded cells with no bedding, non-working sinks, and one sandwich a day, while denying requested medical care and menstrual products. Detainees described being locked in bathrooms with strangers of the opposite sex for up to 24 hours and being released into the cold at night with no way home. DHS disputed the allegations, saying ICE holds "higher detention standards than most U.S. prisons."

UT Austin's presidential committee denied tenure to border-surveillance scholar Iván Chaar López despite unanimous faculty approval

In February 2026, the University of Texas at Austin's presidential Promotion and Tenure Committee denied tenure to historian Iván Chaar López despite a unanimous recommendation from his department (7-0), external reviewers (8-0), and his college's tenure committee (19-2), offering no stated academic reason. The denial followed the UT System Board of Regents' adoption of a "controversial topics" classroom-speech policy and the elimination of several interdisciplinary departments, including ethnic and gender studies. No source discloses the exact day of the February decision; the date recorded here is a placeholder for the month.