The Eric brothers left Sierra Leone when rebels took over and began a bloody civil war. When they arrived in the United States seeking asylum, they were met with handcuffs rather than freedom.

The three brothers then spent several years in a county prison.

They presented their story last night to a crowd of about 30 people as part of Asylum Protection Week, which was sponsored by the Penn State chapter of Amnesty International and the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights.

"In 1995, rebels came. They forced people to fight. If you could not fight they would cut off your hands or kill you," 18-year-old Steve Eric said, as he and his brother, 22-year-old James, described how he and his brothers returned home one day to find "blood everywhere."

After about four years of living with almost nothing, the brothers arrived in the United States seeking asylum and were met instead by detainment in prison.

"What the United States is doing in its treatment of asylum seekers is an international violation of human rights," said Douglas Grane (junior-geography), a Penn State Amnesty International member and the Pennsylvania legislative coordinator of Amnesty International. But, as Grane explained, such treatment is common throughout the country.

The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), which handles matters of immigration and asylum, rents space for its detention centers from county prisons. The immigrants and asylum seekers are housed with the general inmates, though they've committed no crime, Grane said.

Kathleen Lucas, executive director of Coalition for Immigrants' Rights at the Community Level, explained that since individuals in such circumstances are not citizens of the United States, they are not granted the rights given to citizens. While lawyers are allowed as representation, individuals have the responsibility of finding their own. The court will not supply them.

In order to be granted asylum, a person must be faced with persecution in one of five categories: race, religion, nationality, membership in a social group or political opinion. Lucas said that while the Erics' case readily displayed such persecution, "they're stuck in limbo. In their particular case the judge believed everything they said, but they didn't have an attorney to fit their case into one of the five categories."

Although they have been released from detention, the brothers have not yet been granted asylum.

"I definitely feel that this is a terrible situation and I hope a lot of people that were here tonight get involved in combating this injustice," said Michael Maneval (junior-journalism).

Both the brothers hope that people will remember what they heard at the talk and act to change the administration.

Lucas reiterated this statement.

"Asylum seekers do not belong in prison. They have not committed any crime."