Immigration agents forcibly transferred a migrant detainee who had organized a hunger strike at a New Jersey detention facility on Monday, drawing confrontations with protesters who said federal officers used pepper spray and batons to clear the area.
Martin Soto had announced the strike on Friday at Delaney Hall in Newark, demanding the release of elderly detainees, young people, and those with medical conditions. The action came after roughly 300 inmates signed a letter describing severe overcrowding, poor sanitation, and inadequate medical care at the facility.
Supporters had been picketing outside since Friday. Tensions erupted late Sunday when word spread that officials planned to move Soto elsewhere. His wife, Gabriela, who has been organizing protests while several months pregnant with their third child, was visiting when she spotted a man being pushed into a van.
"I was banging on the door of the van," Gabriela told reporters. "I was not letting that happen." She said her husband was screaming and pounding the windows as he was forced inside.
Word spread quickly. Within hours, demonstrators gathered and blocked the entrance, chanting "Free Martin" and "Free them all" to prevent the vehicle from leaving. By around 1 a.m. Monday, federal agents moved to clear the roadway at Delaney Hall's back gate.
What happened next became the flashpoint. Protesters reported that ICE personnel used force to disperse the crowd, pushing them against cars and sidewalks. At least one person was struck with pepper spray, and another suffered a leg injury, according to accounts from the scene.
The Department of Homeland Security offered a different account. A spokesperson said approximately 125 demonstrators had surrounded the facility and formed barricades blocking entrances. The statement claimed that agitators struck the transfer vehicle with unidentified objects, causing significant damage, and that ICE agents successfully removed about 70 of them and cleared the obstruction.
Despite the resistance, Soto was moved to the Elizabeth Contract Detention Facility. The DHS also announced that visitation at Delaney Hall has been suspended.
Gabriela Soto alleged that her husband faced retaliation for her activism. She said detention staff interrogated him for eight hours on Friday, asking whether she was organizing the protest and whether he was leading the strike inside the facility. She also described agents pressuring him to convince her to stop demonstrating.
Make The Road New Jersey, an advocacy organization, said its lawyers had been in contact with the U.S. attorney's office. According to their account, a federal judge had issued an order prohibiting Soto from being transferred out of state while his habeas petition moved through the courts.
The transfer prompted swift political attention. Senator Andy Kim and Governor Mikie Sherrill both appeared at the facility Monday morning to speak with detainees' family members and community advocates. Kim called for Delaney Hall to be shut down immediately, saying ICE cannot be permitted to operate in that manner.
Author James Rodriguez: "The showdown here isn't just about one detainee or even one facility, it's about how far federal agents will go to move people against public resistance, and whether courts or elected officials can actually check that power."
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