New Jersey Struggles with Protests Near Immigration Detention Center

Governor Mikie Sherrill aimed to ease tensions by replacing federal agents with state police at an immigration detention center in Newark. The effort did not succeed as planned.

As demonstrations continued at night outside Delaney Hall, which serves as an immigration detention center, clashes sometimes erupted between protesters and law enforcement. These incidents were documented by witnesses and video footage.

Concerned about Newark turning into another Minneapolis, where federal officers fatally shot two individuals during widespread immigration protests, Governor Sherrill deployed state police to manage the situation outside Delaney Hall. Despite this intervention, unrest persisted with demonstrators pushing against barricades, igniting fires, and state troopers responding on both foot and horseback.

These volatile confrontations have posed challenges for police forces nationwide, including in cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, and New York. In those areas, local authorities prohibit collaboration with federal officials in civil immigration enforcement. Nonetheless, police must ensure that public order is maintained by preventing trespassing, traffic obstruction, or property damage. In doing so, they sometimes face perceptions of alignment with federal agents.

New Jersey’s government now finds itself entangled in this ongoing crisis. An example of this situation is Mayor Ras Baraka of Newark, who announced a reduction in the city’s response after the state’s initial efforts to control security around Delaney Hall earlier this week.

Protests at Delaney Hall began a year ago when it reopened as a facility holding up to 1,000 detainees. The center is operated by GEO Group, a major private prison company. Over the past five months, the majority of these protests had remained peaceful.