This week, protests at the Delaney Hall immigrant detention center in New Jersey put a national spotlight on the inhumane conditions and abuses people are facing in ICE custody.
About 300 detainees are reportedly participating in a hunger strike, protesting poor food, medical neglect, and the denial of due process.
On Monday, advocates, elected officials, and family members of detainees gathered to support detainees enduring these abuses. ICE agents responded by attacking the crowd with pepper balls and tear gas.
Among those attacked was Senator Andy Kim (NJ), who toured the facility earlier that day.
“What I witnessed and experienced today was shameful,” Sen. Kim said, reporting that the conditions are “absolutely unacceptable.”
These abuses are not confined to Delaney Hall. Similar appalling conditions have been reported across the country while deaths inside ICE detention facilities have hit record highs.
Nobody in our country should be treated this way. These are our neighbors. They are parents, children, siblings, friends, and valued community members. They deserve to be treated with respect and dignity.
Shamefully, the Trump administration has not repented but instead responded with more lies, bigotry, and abuses. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullen disgracefully dismissed the hunger strike as “a handful of individuals” protesting because “they want their ethnic food.” President Trump baselessly smeared the detainees as “horrible killers,” despite the fact that the overwhelmingly majority have no criminal record. As protests continued outside the facility this week, ICE agents responded with more violence.
It is past time for Congress to hold the administration accountable, end these immoral detention policies, and rein in ICE’s lawless violence.
“The ease with which it seems violence is emerging in our streets in America — we cannot normalize this,” Sen. Kim said. “We cannot give ICE billions of dollars more with no accountability.”
We expect Senate leadership to try again very soon to ram through a blank check for ICE as part of a budget reconciliation bill. As FCNL’s Bridget Moix writes in RNS, now is another critical moment to build pressure and demand accountability.
Tell your Senators: Not another penny for lawless ICE violence and detention!
Elsewhere
Rumors of Peace
We are hearing that a more substantial peace deal between Iran and the U.S. may be imminent. But as of the time we sent this newsletter, nothing is official or public. We have heard this could be coming soon for weeks now. Movement toward peace is always good – this unauthorized, immoral war has already killed too many and caused too much devastation.
Congress must keep up the pressure to help create political space for peace. We need lawmakers to reassert their authority by passing War Powers Resolutions to demand an end to this war. Join the movement and demand action!
U.S. Continues to Threaten Cuba
This month, the U.S. military has prepared to launch a military attack on Cuba, with ships, marines, and aircraft poised. This comes amid a crushing blockade from the U.S. which has led to serious humanitarian consequences on the island. A lack of fuel is causing families to go hungry, surgeries to be delayed, and babies to go unimmunized.
In late April, FCNL received a message from our Quaker colleagues in Cuba. They asked us to consider an essential question: “Does this alleviate human suffering or increase it?”
The U.S. government is only increasing suffering in Cuba. A military attack would only make things worse.
New from FCNL Experts
- FCNL lobbyists explain what’s wrong with the “Farm Bill” that the Senate is considering. It doesn’t meet the needs of Native communities, farmers, or families. Luckily, there is still time to change that!
- FCNL’s Priya Moran wrote in Inkstick about the how Congress could preserve foreign assistance and save lives in the latest budget cycle.
Limited time: Your gift to FCNL will be matched
With your support, FCNL is calling on Congress to prioritize people and peace over weapons and war. With a generous matching gift challenge now underway, your gift will be matched, dollar-for-dollar, up to $338,586. Double your impact when you donate today!
