Tensions are rising in New Jersey after Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested outside a federal immigration detention center and three members of Congress were threatened with criminal action after inspecting the facility.
The incident occurred May 9 outside Delaney Hall, which U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement uses to hold immigrants pending deportation. Baraka was released after being accused of trespassing and failing to heed warnings to leave, according to the Associated Press. “Stepping out of an SUV with flashing emergency lights, he told waiting supporters: ‘The reality is this: I didn’t do anything wrong.’”
LaMonica McIver
The same assertion was made by U.S. Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman, Rob Menendez and LaMonica McIver, all Democrats from New Jersey, who had arrived at Delaney Hall for a scheduled inspection.
A Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman said the trio was involved in a tussle at the entrance of Delaney Hall before the inspection and could face criminal charges as a result, NBC News reported.
McIver said it was the federal authorities who sparked the incident. “None of this had to happen. We arrived at Delaney Hall to do our jobs — period. Instead of facilitating congressional oversight, as they are obligated to do, ICE created chaos.”
Rob Menendez
Menendez said the federal government knows it was in the wrong throughout the incident: “After Mayor Baraka was arrested yesterday, DHS officials let us conduct our tour as is required by law. So despite the admin’s attempts to spin this, they know we had every right to be there and enter the facility. If you ignore the spin, you’ll see there is only one accurate.”
“No matter what this administration tells the American people, the law is very clear: Members of Congress have a legal right to enter any DHS detention facility to conduct oversight without prior notice — something I’ve done twice this year without issue,” he added.
The incident sparked an interfaith prayer vigil hosted May 12 by Faith in New Jersey, an affiliate of Faith in Action.The group said it was “standing together in prayer” and united in “their collective moral command to defend human dignity in the face of dehumanizing authoritarianism.”
The religious leaders also denounced Baraka’s arrest and the threats against Watson Coleman, Menendez and McIver.
“On Friday, we witnessed ICE violently shut down a lawful oversight visit. Congress members were assaulted. Mayor Baraka was arrested. Our neighbors remain disappeared inside,” the organization posted on Facebook.
“Delaney Hall is an unlawful detention facility where our disappeared neighbors are being held.”
“Delaney Hall is an unlawful detention facility where our disappeared neighbors are being held. We urge faith leaders across the country to bear witness with us today,” said Charlene Walker, executive director of Faith in New Jersey.
Charlene Walker
Meanwhile, White House special adviser Stephen Miller raised alarm by announcing the administration is “actively looking at” suspending the writ of habeas corpus, ABC News reported.
“The Constitution is clear, and that of course is the supreme law of the land, that the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus can be suspended in a time of invasion,” Miller said about the right of individuals to challenge arrest and detention in court. “So, I would say that’s an option we’re actively looking at. A lot of it depends on whether the courts do the right thing or not.”
America’s Voice described the comments as “chilling” evidence the administration is willing to further violate the Constitution in its immigration crackdown.
“The administration’s assertion that we are in the midst of an immigrant ‘invasion’ is not only a dangerous and false conspiracy theory that has inspired multiple anti-immigrant mass-shootings, but also is an assessment directly undercut by this administration’s own intelligence agencies.”
President Trump already has misused the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to suspend due process for immigrants facing deportation, the organization added. “The ‘invasion’ lie is a very dangerous claim at the heart of this administration’s anti-immigrant agenda. This falsehood forms the foundation of the administration’s effort to weaponize immigration in order to seize new executive powers and endanger the rights of every American.”
The Haitian Bridge Alliance also warned every American to beware if habeas corpus is suspended.
“This is not just an attack on migrants — it is a direct threat to the constitutional rights of every person in the United States,” said Guerline Jozef, executive director of Haitian Bridge Alliance. “If the government can suspend due process protections for immigrants today, it can do the same to American citizens tomorrow. No one should be comfortable with that precedent.”
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