NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested Friday at an ICE Detention Center where he was protesting its opening, a federal prosecutor said.
Alina Habba, interim U.S. attorney for New Jersey, said on the social platform X that Baraka committed trespass and ignored warnings from Homeland Security personnel to leave Delaney Hall, an ICE detention facility run by private prison operator GEO Group.
The mayor has been protesting the opening of the facility throughout this week, saying its operators did not get proper permits.
this is likely to benefit him tremendously in the gubernatorial race, where he’s running in the Democratic primary but has generally been the third or fourth wheel to this point. if you’re curious about more details of how he’s been protesting, DocumentedNY has you covered:
To representatives of Delaney Hall, the mayor was staging a publicity stunt. But to the mayor, Delaney Hall was pitting his city in a direct confrontation with the Trump administration’s deportation agenda. Delaney Hall, Baraka claimed, was violating city and state laws by contracting with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and by prohibiting him from entering the facility, they were evading the enforcement of city codes.
In April, the city of Newark filed a lawsuit to block Delaney Hall from reopening and to allow city officials to inspect the facility for code violations. The Trump administration has since attempted to intervene to stop the lawsuit.
For nearly three hours, the mayor and his staff, along with over a dozen protesters who chanted “Say it loud, say it proud, immigrants are welcome here,” waited to be allowed in.
Nearby, two bulldozers from the Newark Department of Public Works, each carrying a large concrete slab, were parked nearby as a veiled threat to the detention center’s management, insinuating that if they do not comply with the city’s mandates, the mayor might order the facility to be barricaded.
When asked if he planned to place barricades outside the facility, Baraka, who is currently running for governor of New Jersey, smirked and stated he was entertaining the idea.
This is like those 1a audit dudes who stand there and film, then get arrested for ‘trespass’ on public property.
He should order the barracade to be put up
Better yet, organize a production of Les Mis. On the street. With the London cast.
Missed opportunity for a Baraka-cade. Barakade?
Trying to do code enforcement in their own city for an entity that has repeatedly ignored compliance issues, is protesting? Local aw enforcement not considered executive activity any more? This is like that cop who arrested a firefighter for not moving his vehicle while working on an accident victim.
My kitties used to produce aw enforcement.
Sounds like we have a real one.
