Max Londonio tells his story

With his family, Machinist Brother Max Londonio shared his experiences inside the Northwest Detention Center

OLYMPIA, WA (July 21, 2025) — Prolonged hunger, solitary confinement, and limited access to basic hygiene — these are just some of the conditions Maximo Londonio faced during nearly two months of detention at the privately-run Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma.

Brother Max, a member of IAM Local Lodge 695, part of IAM District 160, is a green card-holder living in Olympia, WA who was detained in May upon returning from a family vacation to the Philippines. In a press conference Thursday, Londonio detailed his experience at NWDC, the support he received from community groups like Tanggol Migrante Network WA and his union, and the inaction from the Philippine government. Brother Max shared his experiences in an effort to call for accountability from ICE for the brutal conditions inside NWDC, and also the Philippine consulate, which provided no assistance apart from a small payment to Londonio’s commissary account. 

Brother Max was held in solitary confinement for 27 days. He went for hours with nothing to do, experienced hunger from prolonged and irregular breaks between meals, and had few opportunities to shower. Hundreds of immigrants, migrants, and asylum seekers continue to be held in similar conditions at the detention center, run by GEO Group, a for-profit prison company with a revenue of more than $2.4 billion in 2o24. 

Despite their duty to support citizens aboard, the Philippine consulate failed the Londonio family, per Brother Max’s wife and fiercest advocate, Crystal.

“The many times we reached out to the Philippine consulate…I felt it was such a waste of time,” said Crystal. “I had to continue to reiterate everything. I had to offer them some solution. I had to offer them information.” 

Consulates have an obligation to provide support to nationals in legal matters in other countries. But groups like Tanggol Migrante have documented a systemic lack of care and resources for Filipinos detained in immigration centers across the U.S., a gap that community organizations have stepped in to fill.

The Londonio’s expressed appreciation for Max’s union and the broad community support, but the experience of sudden detention in the U.S., a country Brother Max has called home for decades, has shaken the family.

“I have spent my whole life loving a country that didn’t love me back,” said Londonio’s daughter, Beayanca, who is a citizen, like her mother, Crystal. “Spent my whole life appreciating the opportunities and the freedom I had just for it to be stripped from my brown hands.” 

While Brother Max is now free, the fates of those he was detained with are front of mind. He called for supporters to continue to fight to release those still held in inhumane conditions inside NWDC.

“As we continue to advocate for justice, accountability, and migrant rights, let’s stand with one another in unity,” said Maximo Londonio. “We, the people.”