Anti-ICE Protests Continue To Rage In NJ After Turbulent Week At Delaney Hall

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — It’s been a long week at Delaney Hall.

Last weekend, hundreds of detainees went on hunger strike at the privately run federal immigration detention center, which is located in Newark and houses prisoners from across the state.

Family members of detainees and advocates immediately launched a vigil outside the jail to support the hunger strikers. Since then, a series of clashes have broken out between demonstrators and ICE officers – with at least 17 arrests taking place.

>> RELATED: Baton Strikes, Pepper Spray, Lunging Kicks And Multiple Arrests: NJ ICE Prison Under Siege

The 1,000-bed prison is the first federal detention center to open under the second term of President Donald Trump. Delaney Hall has seen a wave of controversy since then, including allegations of poor treatment of detainees and visitors, federal charges against the city’s mayor and a U.S. congresswoman, a high-profile prison escape, and a detainee who died in federal custody.

Its owner, the GEO Group, is one of the largest private prison companies in the nation.

Here are five updates at the end of a turbulent week at Delaney Hall:

ARRESTS

Nine more arrests took place outside the prison as protests continued on Thursday night, authorities reported.

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin accused demonstrators of “biting, kicking and punching law enforcement officers.”

Two anti-ICE demonstrators were arrested Tuesday and accused of spraying officers with an “unknown chemical substance.” Six more arrests took place on Wednesday night after several protesters allegedly threw objects at law enforcement officers – and local police “refused to help,” federal authorities say.

Protesters and advocates have vehemently disputed the allegations from federal authorities, claiming that ICE agents have been the aggressors.

Activists say the situation has turned violent, with multiple reports of pepper spraying, baton-wielding and crowd-shoving shared online. The people who have allegedly been sprayed include a local pastor and U.S. Sen. Andy Kim. Others have been “roughed up,” including a nurse who was allegedly shoved to the ground and a military veteran who was tackled to the ground while providing medical care to other demonstrators.

U.S. Sen. Cory Booker – who made an inspection visit to the prison Wednesday – pointed to video footage circulating online that appears to show an ICE agent striking a protester with a baton into what seemed to be a moving 18‑wheeler truck.

“I am deeply disturbed and outraged by the rapid escalation overnight at Delaney Hall,” the senator said.

PROTESTS

With protests expected to continue into the foreseeable future, Gov. Sherrill took action on the still-evolving situation Friday.

Sherrill said New Jersey law enforcement is establishing a “peaceful and protected” protest zone in the area outside Delaney Hall.

“I’ll also keep calling on everyone there now – especially ICE – to de-escalate the situation, to act humanely, to protest peacefully and to respect the laws and constitution of the United States,” she said at a press conference.

Several online fundraisers have been launched in support of the detainees and their families (see the list here).

Meanwhile, a counter-protest is being planned by pro-ICE supporters at 10 a.m. outside the prison on Saturday, May 30, according to a social media post from the Montclair Republicans and the America First Republicans of NJ.

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HUNGER STRIKE

The hunger striking detainees have alleged that they are facing “inhumane” conditions including bad food, medical neglect, overcrowding and an unfair court system. They also refused to comply with the GEO Group’s “$1 a day work program.”

Homeland Security officials and the GEO Group have denied the allegations of mistreatment.

The hunger strike began on May 22. As of Thursday, most of the detainees are eating again – but the work strike is holding steady at “near 100 percent,” according to Eyes On ICE New Jersey.

Delaney Hall detainees continue to demand their freedom, including the immediate release of elderly, young and pregnant people, as well as those with serious medical conditions. Read their latest letter from inside the prison here.

Meanwhile, advocates are now alleging that ICE agents have “violently beaten” and pepper sprayed detainees in retaliation for taking part in the hunger strike.

“Someone will be killed if no one intervenes and shuts this down,” charged Nedia Morsy, director with immigrant advocacy group Make the Road New Jersey.

“These masked agents are acting as if they’re above the law,” Morsy said. “This week we’ve seen them pepper spray a sitting U.S. Senator, kidnap medics and push protesters into oncoming traffic – and now this.”

Sen. Andy Kim said his office received multiple calls alleging the use of pepper spray and physical force against detainees inside Delaney Hall on Thursday.

“The people inside Delaney Hall deserve their day in court and to be treated humanely, not violently,” Kim said. “The time is now to shut this broken facility down.”

INSPECTIONS

State and local authorities say they are unable to gain access to the prison to perform inspections.

“The New Jersey Department of Health today sought to conduct a health inspection of Delaney Hall, but it was denied full access and was allowed to inspect only a limited part of the facility,” Gov. Sherrill said Thursday.

“As I’ve said repeatedly, refusing to provide full access raises serious questions about what ICE is trying to hide from public view,” she charged.

“We will review and share the department’s findings from the limited portion it was allowed to inspect, and we will continue to pursue all appropriate avenues for demanding transparency and ensuring humane conditions for the individuals being held at the facility,” Sherrill added.

The City of Newark has also had trouble getting inside the prison, its mayor said.

• Related: Newark Needs Inspection Access At Delaney Hall, Mayor Demands

“For the past year, the city has been engaged in litigation with the GEO Group due to its failure to comply with municipal ordinances when it began operating Delaney Hall,” Ras Baraka alleged.

“Our concerns remain unresolved, as critical city agencies – including the health department, fire division and code enforcement, have repeatedly been denied access to inspect the facility,” Baraka said.

‘CRIMINALS’ – OR NOT?

The standoff has caught the attention of President Trump, who dismissed the protesters and claimed that the United States runs the “finest facilities anywhere in the world of their type.”

Homeland Security officials, including Mullin, have insisted that Delaney Hall is housing some of the “worst of the worst” criminals in New Jersey. “This isn’t the Holiday Inn,” he said in a recent interview.

Mullin shared a list of detainees who are imprisoned at the jail in a video on Friday. The list included people accused of homicide, robbery and drug trafficking.

Advocates and family members of ICE detainees have pushed back against the claim that most of the immigrants imprisoned at facilities like Delaney Hall are “criminals,” however.

In April, data research organization Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse reported that out of 60,311 people held in ICE detention across the nation, about 70.8 percent had no criminal conviction before being apprehended – and many of those who do were convicted only of minor offenses such as traffic violations.

Sen. Booker said the majority of the detainees he spoke with have no criminal history or convictions related to the kind of violence that Trump and his administration have cited.

“I believe that most Americans, if they saw who is being held and the conditions under which they’re detained, would agree that this facility is a moral stain on our nation,” Booker said.

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