5/27 Update Delaney: Call is still for to continue to mobilize at Delaney Hall, 5/27 3:30pm / Also Did Sen Kim undermine Blockade?
The current call continues to be everybody who can to mobilize outside Delaney Hall death camp in Newark NJ on Doremus Road”
From those outside hall:
“We need more people at Delaney to hold the line, protest, and essentially be bodies. Medics and safety team members have been there for days and there is an urgent call for those with experience to help out, so these people that have been there for days have assistance.”
Why did Sen. Kim do this?
\From Project NINJA E-mail 5/25:
I can provide contact with protestors and organizers on the ground, and via Signal can provide regular photos, videos, and updates. Please cover this breaking story.
New Jersey lawmakers have converged on the Delaney Hall ICE prison in Newark on Monday, May 25 – while Gov. Mikie Sherrill was briefly there and has left, Sen. Andy Kim, Reps Rob Menendez (8th district), Nellie Pou (9th), Analilia Mejia (11th) are present. All but Sherrill have been at Delaney Hall before now this weekend – Menendez actually spent the night trying to be allowed in.
A hunger and work strike by captives, and a protest vigil outside, began Friday, in response to what captives describe as untenable conditions, rampant illness, rotten food, and worse. In retaliation for this action, on Sunday, Geo Group staff running the for-profit prison attempted to move Martin Soto, the captive husband of protest organizer Gaby Soto, lying to him by telling him paperwork was for his release when it was for deportation. Peaceful protestors blocked the road and prevented the departure of the van that he was pushed into in front of his pregnant wife. He was eventually allowed back into the prison but is now in solitary confinement. Geo Group staff also used tear gas on protestors at around 1:15 am.
For now keeping this as one posting with updates from latest to earliest:
May 24 Communications from Eyes on ICE Delaney – Come to Delaney if and when you can!
Folks putting out an urgent distress call for Delaney Hall, they are attempting to transfer lead organizer of the hunger strike, Martin Soto. We are currently holding the line and need witnesses, street medics in case of escalation, and PPE in case of escalation (masks, water for tear gas, goggles).
Please put out alert to all press. Call the Governor and your federal reps to intervene. This is NJ’s first hunger strike since 2020. People in Delaney Hall are putting everything on the line, please support them.
Dear friends,
We are writing to uplift the breaking news of a hunger and labor strike at Delaney Hall. Families of people in detention will be hosting an overnight vigil starting at 3 pm today and lasting until visitation hours begin tomorrow morning.
As part of the demands, hunger strikers are calling on Governor Sherrill to meet with them to discuss conditions, their legal hurdles, and the means by which many have ended up arrested and detained. Earlier this year, a modified version of the Immigrant Protections Package was passed — allowing for continued collaboration between New Jersey law enforcement and federal immigration agents. We are currently fighting for a $20 mil budget investment in the Detention and Deportation Defense Initiative and $10 million in the fund for Unaccompanied Minors.
We will keep you posted on this development and encourage you to support those on the ground with Eyes on ICE providing mutual aid for tonight’s vigil and their ongoing efforts during regular visitation hours.
Solidarity,
Team NJAIJ
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
HUNGER AND LABOR STRIKE AT DELANEY HALL: RELEASE ELDERLY, YOUNG, SERIOUSLY ILL & INJURED
Second Coordinated Strike Within 1 Year Anniversary of Delaney Hall’s Opening
Newark, NJ [5/22/26] – Earlier this morning, families of people detained in Delaney Hall hosted a rally calling out the dangerous conditions inside, including medical neglect, lack of air conditioning, and lack of food – including rotten and spoiled meals. As part of this morning’s rally, people in detention used their phones to call out to loved ones and took turns speaking through the bullhorn. In one of the calls, those in detention announced a hunger and labor strike, calling for a complete investigation of the facility, its operations, and for Governor Sherrill to visit to discuss protections that keep communities safe from ICE.
“We are not striking to demand better treatment and conditions,” those in detention said in a statement released at the rally. “We are doing this to demand freedom.”
Families, advocates, and allies will be holding an overnight vigil starting Friday, May 22nd at 3 p.m. through to tomorrow morning in solidarity with the strike’s launch.
On May 18, 2026, Representatives LaMonica McIver, Rob Menendez, and Analilia Mejia conducted an unannounced visit to Delaney Hall in response to claims of abuse and torture from people inside. The Representatives confirmed that all claims were accurate, documenting insufficient food, inadequate medical care, and overall inhumane conditions.
Following her visit, Representative McIver stated, “In an act of real bravery and obvious desperation, detainees wrote a letter about the conditions that they are facing here at Delaney Hall. Not enough food, no medical care, and conditions they call torture—conditions any of us would recognize as torture.”
Hunger strikes are one of the few tools available to people detained by ICE and historically have been effective in enacting change and raising awareness. In an attempt to deter and suppress these strikes from growing, ICE has set its own threshold for what it considers a true hunger strike, including forgoing nine consecutive meals or going without food and water for 72 hours – a nearly biologically impossible feat for people already undernourished and medically neglected. Only after those 72 hours will someone in detention be medically evaluated and possibly force fed.
“ICE claims they are treating people fairly, just like they claim their behavior is constitutional and above the law when they burst through car windows, chase school children, or publicly execute citizens in the street,” said Amy Torres with New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice. “So whatever imaginary metric ICE wants to assign to hunger strikes is one we will outright reject. The people in Delaney Hall have decried conditions from day one. They are now using their last available tool to bring attention to the deadly and dangerous conditions inside.”
In June 2025, people detained at Delaney Hall rose up in a riot protesting the lack of meals and drinking water. Prior to the uprising, those in detention reported frozen and incomplete meals with some individuals receiving only a hot dog while others would receive the bun. That riot resulted in a violent suppression where additional federal agents were called into the facility with teargas and riot gear. As part of the fracas, four people escaped Delaney Hall after breaking through a partition made of chicken wire and plaster. That escape, advocates noted, underscored the outrage over GEO Group, the owner and operator of Delaney Hall who disregarded local permitting and inspections in order to rush the facility open. David Venturella, a former principal of GEO Group, will be named as acting ICE Director later this month, further illustrating the profit-to-politics pipeline that has become a hallmark of the Trump Administration.
In December 2025, Jean Wilson Brutus was pronounced dead within 24 hours of arriving at Delaney Hall, prompting calls for an independent investigation and autopsy. Wilson Brutus’ death was only reported by ICE a full week after his passing.
“We demand Governor Mikie Sherrill come inside the facility to meet with us. We demand the immediate release of those with serious medical conditions, along with all young and elderly people,” according to the hunger strikers’ statement.
Earlier this year, Governor Sherrill signed a modified version of the Immigrant Protections Package into law, notably watering down protections that would allow continued cooperation between New Jersey law enforcement and federal immigration agents. The changes, advocates say, rob due process from immigrants who are simply charged with a crime but have no recourse through the criminal legal system before being handed over to ICE.
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Folks on strike have 2 demands:
- An immediate meeting with New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill so she can witness conditions firsthand and hear directly from those detained.
- The immediate release of the most vulnerable detainees, including elderly individuals, young people and those with serious medical conditions
RETWEET TO SHERRILL:
https://bsky.app/profile/fightbackbetter.bsky.social/post/3mmk3lhpv5k2b
UPDATE 5/23:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 22nd, 2026
MEDIA CONTACT: Catalina Adorno, 201-598-44 movimientocosechainfo@gmail.com, Jenny Garcia, Eyes On ICE New Jersey, 201-874-1764
Family: Gabriella Soto, 937-930-3179
Hundreds of Immigrants Demand Mikie Sherrill Visit Delaney Hall in Hunger and Labor Strike
NEWARK, NJ – Right now, women and men inside Delaney Hall are refusing to eat and comply with the Geo Group’s $1 dollar a day work program. Hundreds of people detained began the strike as a result of a family-led protest with the demand of a meeting with Governor Mikie Sherill. This was announced via phone this morning during a press conference organized by family members outside. You can watch the livestream HERE.
Via phone call, detainees said they are tired of the inhumane conditions they are subjected to inside, tired of the denial of medical care and tired of finding worms in their food.
The hunger and work strike began this morning and the detainees are already facing retribution. We just received the following message from a family member: “The guards are withholding phone and tablet privileges from all the people inside.”
This action is being witnessed and supported by Eyes on ICE New Jersey (EOINJ), alongside community members, family members and volunteers maintaining a 24-hour solidarity presence outside Delaney Hall. We will continue holding a 24-hour vigil, standing in unwavering solidarity with the brave men and women inside who are engaged in this collective act of resistance.
Throughout the day, volunteers stationed outside have remained in direct communication with detainees inside. Despite the risks they are facing, detainees have reported being in high spirits, strengthened and empowered by the knowledge that their families and community are standing with them.
This is not a cry of despair. It is an extraordinary act of courage, dignity, and collective resistance.
Their demands are clear:
- An immediate meeting with Governor Mikie Sherrill so she can witness conditions firsthand and hear directly from those detained.
- The immediate release of the most vulnerable detainees, including elderly individuals, young people and those with serious medical conditions.
The individuals inside Delaney Hall are not asking for more “comfortable” conditions. They are demanding their fundamental human rights: dignity, safety, medical care and freedom.
Families, loved ones, faith leaders, advocates, and activists across New Jersey are urgently calling on residents to contact Governor Mikie Sherrill and demand that she respond immediately to the crisis unfolding inside Delaney Hall.
As this hunger and labor strike continues, the message from inside is unmistakable:
They are not giving up. They are standing together. We are standing with them.
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About Eyes on ICE New Jersey (EOINJ): We are a grassroots coalition of individuals and organizations whose primary focus is providing community support for our neighbors who are experiencing the trauma of having a loved one kidnapped and held by ICE. We call for all immigrant detention facilities in NJ, whether run privately or by ICE, to be closed. We advocate for the release of all detained community members in our state and beyond.
About Movimiento Cosecha: is a movement of immigrant workers and families that fight for respect, dignity, and permanent protection of the entire immigrant community
UPDATE:
We are writing to uplift the breaking news of a hunger and labor strike at Delaney Hall. Families of people in detention will be hosting an overnight vigil starting at 3 pm today and lasting until visitation hours begin tomorrow morning.
As part of the demands, hunger strikers are calling on Governor Sherrill to meet with them to discuss conditions, their legal hurdles, and the means by which many have ended up arrested and detained. Earlier this year, a modified version of the Immigrant Protections Package was passed — allowing for continued collaboration between New Jersey law enforcement and federal immigration agents. We are currently fighting for a $20 mil budget investment in the Detention and Deportation Defense Initiative and $10 million in the fund for Unaccompanied Minors.
We will keep you posted on this development and encourage you to support those on the ground with Eyes on ICE providing mutual aid for tonight’s vigil and their ongoing efforts during regular visitation hours.
Solidarity,
Team NJAIJ
For immediate release: May 22nd, 2026
Media contact: Movimiento Cosecha, movimientocosechainfo@gmail.com
***MEDIA ADVISORY**
‘Hear Us Now!’: Families of People Detained Demand to be Heard in Friday Morning Rally Outside of Delaney Hall
451 Doremus Avenue, Newark, New Jersey
Starting at 10:00 AM
What: After multiple reports of no air conditioning in record breaking heat, denial of medication and medical treatment and live worms found in food given by the Geo Group and Driscoll Foods at Delaney Hall, families will rally outside demanding justice and freedom for their loved ones. This recent condition report builds on months of testimonies of medical neglect, abuse, and mistreatment of both people in detention and visitors. Families and advocates will share their own testimonies and read others.
Where: 451 Doremus Avenue, Newark, New Jersey outside the Radical Hospitality Tent (white tent)
When: Friday May 22nd at 10:00 am
Who: Families with loved ones detained at Delaney and Eyes on ICE (a collective of activists, advocates, and faith leaders who provide support to visitors outside of Delaney Hall)
Media visuals: Letters (redacted to protect the identities of people), banners, and signs
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Eyes on ICE: We are a grassroots coalition of individuals and organizations whose primary focus is providing community support for our neighbors who are experiencing the trauma of having a loved one kidnapped and held by ICE. We call for all immigrant detention facilities in NJ to be closed. We advocate for the release of all detained community members in our state and beyond.
About Delaney Hall: It is a privately owned carceral facility with over a 1000 bed capacity that reopened pursuant to a 15 year contract with ICE on May 1, 2025. On any given visiting day as many as 500 people come to visit. They are forced to park illegally on a four lane truck route, because the facility provides no visitor parking. On June 12, 2025, it was the site of an uprising after tensions boiled over after people held inside were not given any food for 20 hours. It is also the site of the death of Jean Wilson Brutus who was detained at Delaney for less than 24 hours.
