By Amir Khafagy,Clarissa León
Copyright truthout
Department of Homeland Security agents arrested 70 New Yorkers outside 26 Federal Plaza on Thursday afternoon, with an additional 12 elected officials arrested upstairs, after they had attempted to enter the building to assess the living conditions of immigrants detained there.
Some of the electeds had made it past the doors, and came upstairs — only to be handcuffed moments later.
Among the officials arrested include New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams, Assemblymember Emily Gallagher, Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas, Assemblymember Robert C. Carroll, State Sen. Jabari Brisport and Council member Sandy Nurse.Lander (who had, in June, been arrested by DHS police at Federal Plaza while attempting to escort an immigrant from a court hearing), Sen. Julia Salazar, and more than 15 other elected officials and faith leaders said they had come to 26 Federal Plaza to “peacefully” gain entry to the 10th floor.
“I’ve been here more than a dozen times, and every single time I have seen a lawless abduction,” said Comptroller Lander, while sitting cross-legged on the floor outside the elevators of the first floor of Federal Plaza. “I saw a woman who was eight months pregnant have her husband ripped from her arms, and what she said to my wife, she’s sobbing in my wife’s arms, was, ‘Are they going to kill him?’”
Documented witnessed the doors to the courts being locked and manned with armed guards. Paper was taped to the door windows to block views inside.
Dozens of others, including faith leaders, doctors and several elected officials, congregated outside the building, brandishing hand-painted yellow signs, and chanting, “Pass NY for ALL” and “ICE Out of NY.” Their message to the ICE agents standing inside was clear: Get out of New York.
Chants of “Let us in! Let us in!” were punctuated by the sound of others shouting in unison, “Say it loud, say it clear, immigrants are welcome here!”
The group, part of New Yorkers Against ICE, demanded that state lawmakers pass the NYC Trust Act, a bill that would, among other things, release all the immigrants being held at 26 Federal Plaza.
Their protest comes following yesterday’s news that federal judge Lewis A. Kaplan had once again issued guidance to the Trump administration to improve conditions for detainees living in the 10th-floor holding cells at 26 Federal Plaza. Judge Kaplan issued a preliminary injunction Wednesday, with the aim of providing even longer-lasting relief as conditions are being met. Earlier, on Aug. 12, Judge Kaplan issued a temporary restraining order (which would remain in place for 14 days) ordering ICE to overhaul the conditions at the building. In issuing the TRO, he noted that the detainees “have suffered, and are likely to suffer, irreparable harm.”Days before the TRO was issued, the American Civil Liberties Union, New York Civil Liberties Union, Make the Road New York and Wang Hecker LLP, filed a lawsuit that described deplorable conditions at the holding cells which were later confirmed by video evidence first provided by THE CITY and New York Immigration Coalition.
In a voice memo shared with THE CITY, one man said: “They haven’t given us food, they haven’t given us medicine. We’re cold. There are people who’ve been here for 10, 15 days inside. We’re just waiting.”
Sergio Alberto Barco Mercado, a named plaintiff represented by attorneys at Make The Road, chose to file the lawsuit on behalf of other immigrants. His supervising immigration attorney, Alexandra Rizio, told Documented that the TRO was a step in the right direction.
“It means that ICE is not above the law,” she said in an interview in August. “It means that ICE and the federal government have to meet basic minimum requirements relating to how they treat immigrant detainees.”
On Aug. 19, a group of doctors with the New York Doctors coalition had also unsuccessfully requested entry to assess the health of the detainees. A spokesperson for DHS called their requests “insane,” and said that the doctors’ random entry would put “detainees, staff, and law enforcement safety at risk.”
“Today makes it clear that New Yorkers are not going to stand by while ICE kidnaps their immigrant neighbors,” said State Senator Julia Salazar. “It’s also clear that all of us leaders have an obligation to take action — sharp language is not enough.”
Protest organizers say the fight’s not over and have already announced plans to hold a follow up demonstration on September 25 at 6 p.m. at Foley Square.As of publishing, the following had been arrested:
NYC Comptroller Brad Lander
State Senator Julia Salazar
State Senator Jabari Brisport
State Senator Gustavo Rivera
Assemblymember Robert Carroll
Assemblymember Emily Gallaghher
Assemblymember Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas
Assemblymember Marcela Mitaynes
Assemblymember Claire Valdez
Assemblymember Tony Simone
Assemblymember Steven Raga
Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams
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