On Thursday night, tensions erupted during a lively protest outside the Delaney Hall Detention Center in New Jersey, resulting in the detention of at least three individuals. The demonstrators voiced their anger towards federal agents, with some calling out phrases like “shoot them in the head.”
In a video from the scene, demonstrators were seen being escorted away, while one individual shouted through a megaphone, “You’re like a clown, don’t line up. Fix it, you assholes.” Others were equally vocal, demanding that investigators “pick up a gun and shoot yourself” and “shoot yourself in the head, the cops, the food, everything.”
While some protesters were reportedly pepper-sprayed during encounters with ICE officers, the Department of Homeland Security and ICE have not yet responded to requests for comments on the arrests.
Activists argue that ICE detainees are engaged in a hunger strike as a form of protest against the conditions at the federal centers, a claim that the Department of Homeland Security disputes.
Many of the protesters, donning keffiyeh scarves, tried to obstruct vehicles and personnel trying to enter or exit the facility, resulting in violent clashes with law enforcement.
Governor of New Jersey, Mikie Sherrill, found herself in a heated exchange with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin after being denied entry to the facility amidst the escalating protests. She accused him of preventing state health inspectors from accessing the site.
“If the situation is really as good as you claim, then let my health inspector do his job,” she remarked on social media. However, Mullin claimed state inspectors had been on-site earlier that day.
He emphasized, “All detainees are provided with adequate food, quality water, blankets, medical care, and the opportunity to communicate with their families and attorneys,” pushing back against Sherrill’s comments.
