Hunger strike begins at Newark's Delaney Hall over detention conditions

• “I’m fed up with my husband being treated like an animal,” said Gabriela Soto, the wife of a detainee Martin Soto at Delaney Hall.

Detainees at Delaney Hall began a hunger strike on May 22 as they protest what they call inhumane conditions at the immigration detention center.

Gabriela Soto, the wife of a detainee Martin Soto at Delaney Hall, partnered with immigration advocacy groups such as New Jersey Alliance for Immigration Justice and Eyes on ICE to organize protests outside Delaney Hall that will coincide with the hunger strike, showing solidarity to those who experiencing “dangerous conditions.”

The groups demand that 100 people be released from Delaney Hall who are elderly, young, seriously ill or injured. They also demand Gov. Mikie Sherrill visits the detention center to discuss protections that keep communities safe from ICE while also opening an investigation to the facility.

The detainees have a different demand. “We are not striking to demand better treatment and conditions, we are doing this to demand freedom.” That was a quote from a detainee who was able to speak with protesters outside of Delaney Hall via phone from inside the center, according to a release from the organization NJ Alliance for Immigration Justice.

An overnight vigil is planned that started at 3 p.m. on Friday and will continue through Saturday morning in support of those detainees embarking on the hunger strike, said the advocacy groups.

“I’m fed up with my husband being treated like an animal,” said Soto in a phone call with NorthJersey.com.

Soto said she is a Peruvian immigrant who has been a U.S. citizen for 20 years, a Kearny resident for 15 years and is a mother with two children and pregnant with a third. She said she has been feeling anxious and depressed since her husband was detained four months ago while picking up diapers for her children. She said he did nothing wrong and had an I-130 form (petition for alien relative) pending before he was detained.

The reported poor conditions of Delaney Hall include medical neglect, lack of air conditioning and lack of food, including rotten and spoiled meals, said the immigration advocacy groups. Soto said her husband has had worms in his dinner.

Members of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement could not be reached for an immediate comment on the alleged poor conditions at the Newark facility.

Soto said she last heard from her husband at around 12:30 p.m. on Friday. She said she plans to spend three days at the hospitality tent near the facility, even in the expected downpour that will happen over the weekend.

Paula Rogovin, of the Eyes on Ice advocacy coalition, does not know how long the detainees intend to carry on the strike, which includes refusal to carry out their cleaning duties and staying out of the facility’s mess hall where meals are served.

“The demand is to release people, especially people who are not well,” Rogovin said of the detainees’ goals for a successful strike. “The bigger demand is to shut down Delaney Hall and free everyone. We don’t know how long it will last,” she added, because no one knows how GEO Group or federal authorities will respond to the collective protest among the imprisoned population.

New Jersey politicians Rep. Rob Menendez, Rep. Analilia Mejia and Rep. LaMonica McIver made a surprise visit to Delaney Hall on May 18, confirming to the media about the horrific conditions inside the facility.

“We just came out of there, and I will tell you that mostly everything that was in that letter was absolutely 100% correct,” said McIver referring to a letter signed by 288 detainees detailing their conditions which they said were public health risks and medical neglect. "Still the same conditions, but worse. People are still not getting adequate food, and they're not getting adequate medical care. We have a pregnant woman who is in there who is in pain right now who needs medical attention."

NorthJersey.com contacted Rep. Menendez and Rep. Watson Coleman for a response to the hunger strike but neither could be reached for an immediate comment.

“I’m in touch with families and advocates of those detained at Delaney Hall, and what I’m hearing about conditions is simply unacceptable. There must be immediate action taken to improve conditions,” said Sen. Andy Kim in a social media post. He said he will introduce a bill that will provide oversight to Delaney Hall. “I’ll continue to push for better conditions and ultimately to shut down this corrupt and inhumane facility.”

Soto said she is not afraid of the Trump administration, adding immigrants make up America and are part of the American dream while calling this country great.

“This was so courageous. They’re risking a lot. Both the families and the detainees. The detainees risk being thrown into solitary confinement, the families are taking a risk because they could be detained, even if they’re citizens,” said Rogovin. “I hope it inspires people around the country.”

Past incidents at Delaney Hall

Delaney Hall, the immigration prison in an industrial area across from the Essex County Correctional Facility on the outskirts of Newark, has had a myriad of controversies since its re-opening just over a year ago.

Advocates and elected officials protested the facility before it re-opened in May of 2025. The center is owned by The GEO Group, which entered a 15-year agreement with ICE on February 2025. It was first detention center to open during Trump's second term and holds 1,196 beds.

Four detainees escaped Delaney Hall on June 2025 after a riot occurred inside that protested insufficient food and other conditions, according to immigration rights groups. They were eventually taken back into custody.

Jean Wilson Brutus, a 41-year-old Haiti national, died while he was detained at Delaney Hall on Dec. 12, 2025. ICE called the death of “suspected natural causes” but the family continues to look into the death as their attorney said they received conflicting information.