New Jersey state police arrested dozens of protesters overnight outside Delaney Hall, the Newark immigration detention facility, as tensions over conditions inside the center and the treatment of detainees reached a breaking point Monday.
Authorities said at least 20 to 25 people were taken into custody for violating a newly imposed curfew and refusing dispersal orders near the facility. Some advocacy groups reported over 46 arrests. Democratic Attorney General Jennifer Davenport said those arrested "had come to the protest armed with helmets, shields, or gas masks" and "deliberately refused to comply with repeated orders to leave the area."
Riot-gear clad state police and mounted officers moved on the crowd less than 15 minutes after issuing a dispersal order, according to reports from journalists at the scene. Video footage captured by bystanders showed the rapid enforcement action.
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka implemented a 9pm to 6am curfew Sunday, citing escalating tensions and increased police presence needed to protect public safety. He noted that multiple individuals had been arrested the previous night carrying weapons.
The clashes are the latest chapter in more than a week of confrontations stemming from hunger and labor strikes by detainees protesting conditions at the facility and the suspension of family visitation rights. On Friday, Democratic Governor Mikie Sherrill and Attorney General Davenport announced that state law enforcement would take over policing duties outside the center from federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to try to de-escalate the situation.
Sherrill said Sunday that family visits would resume Monday after being suspended by DHS over safety concerns, but the decision came too late to prevent the overnight arrests and continued demonstrations.
The confrontations underscore a sharp divide over conditions at Delaney Hall, which is operated by the Geo Group, one of the nation's largest private prison companies, and holds between 800 and 900 people on an average day.
Government denies abuse allegations
The Department of Homeland Security has dismissed complaints about treatment of detainees as false. In social media posts Sunday, DHS claimed that allegations of medical neglect and inedible food were "a hoax" and asserted that "no lawbreakers in the history of human civilization have been better treated than illegal aliens."
DHS stated that all detainees receive due process and comprehensive medical care along with three meals daily, citing a menu that includes fajitas, burritos, jambalaya, fruit, vegetables, salads, brownies, and cake. The agency also posted a video of an unarmed protester being dragged by armed officers with the caption "Don't be this guy."
But those claims clash sharply with accounts from Democratic politicians who visited the facility. U.S. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries toured Delaney Hall Sunday alongside congressional colleagues Josh Gottheimer, Rob Menendez Jr., and LaMonica McIver.
"We spoke to several individuals, none of whom has a criminal record, many of whom have been detained here at Delaney Hall for months," Jeffries told reporters. "The lack of access to quality food, that's not America. The lack of access to adequate medical treatment, that's not America."
Jeffries said the group encountered 18-year-old high school girls being held at the facility and described what he witnessed as "depraved indifference to human life." He called for the facility to be shut down entirely.
DHS responded directly to Jeffries that afternoon, stating: "This is a detention center. We do not provide luxury accommodations. What we do provide are basic necessities."
Governor Sherrill, who has faced criticism from protesters over her handling of the crisis, confirmed that family visits had been partially restored before the announcement of their full resumption.
Author James Rodriguez: "The speed at which state police moved against the protesters shows how quickly this situation has spiraled into a law-and-order battle rather than a policy debate over detention conditions."
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