In the past two weeks, people imprisoned in ICE detention centers in Adelanto, CA and Newark, NJ have organized themselves in an effort to get free. Read a letter from striking prisoners inside Delaney Hall.
This past weekend, protestors have shown up consistently in front of the New Jersey ICE prison where a hunger and labor strike was initiated by up to 200 people inside. Protestors called on elected officials as ICE officers unlawfully assaulted protestors, beating them with sticks, throwing tear gas at them, and generally using violence on unarmed people. Before the weekend was over, NJ Governor Mikie Sherrill ordered ICE to stand down and ordered New Jersey state troopers to take their place, which she promised would be “safer” for protestors. As the weekend progressed, unarmed protestors faced escalated violence as those on the inside suffered retaliation from guards for refusing food and refusing to work.
What can we learn from these actions both inside and outside Delaney? The militarized violence of ICE is no different than the violence of state sanctioned law enforcement. Whether it’s ICE officers retaliating against imprisoned folks or people on the outside peacefully protesting and getting beaten by state troopers, the violence is the same. Abolish ICE. Abolish detention centers. Abolish prisons.
Action items:
Cosecha letter campaign: Free Them All
Linktree to support detainees at Delaney Hall
Follow real-time updates from Delaney Hall
Indivisible event TODAY; learn how to take action no matter where you are
(Taken from an email sent to me by Never Again Action. Emphasis original.)
So, the governor replaced ICE agents with next to no martial/riot control training and replaced them with actual cops? Huh. Seems like she's bending over backwards to facilitate the suppression of any actual resistance within the camps. The best, most human outcome would be simply shutting the camps down and releasing all of the abducted people, but instead, she chose the most sadistic, fascist avenue.