Are ICE detainees on a hunger strike? What's happening at Delaney Hall
Immigration protesters outside Delaney Hall immigrant detention center say some detainees inside have been forgoing food for days in a bid for freedom. Meanwhile, protesters outside have decried the conditions at the facility and clashed with law enforcement officers, leading to some arrests.
Immigration advocates outside Delaney Hall say detainees there began a hunger strike on May 22.
A statement from the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement, denied the claims of poor conditions at the facility and denied that there is a hunger strike. USA TODAY has reached out to DHS for additional comment.
After releasing letters about the conditions inside, detainees announced the hunger strike by phone during a rally, according to the New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice. The group says ICE's definition of hunger strike is narrow and unrealistic.
Meanwhile, advocates continued protesting outside Delaney Hall, demanding that 100 people be released from the facility who are elderly, young, seriously ill or injured. Tensions outside the facility escalated dramatically on May 25 as demonstrators attempted to block vans leaving the site, and federal agents responded with pepper spray and pepper balls.
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said on social media May 26 that two people were arrested for "assaulting, resisting, and impeding federal officers."
The unrest marked the latest chapter in a yearlong conflict that has turned Delaney Hall into one of the most contentious immigration detention centers in the country, drawing scrutiny from lawmakers, activists and federal officials alike. The facility, located in an industrial area on the outskirts of Newark, was the first detention center to open during President Donald Trump's second term.
Here's what to know about the reported hunger strike.
What is Delaney Hall?
The 1,196-bed facility is a private immigration detention center, opened as part of the Trump administration's push to expand detention capacity.
The center is owned by The GEO Group, which entered a 15-year agreement with ICE in February 2025.
Reported hunger strike follows year of conflict
Protests against Delaney Hall began before the facility re-opened and officially began housing detained migrants in May 2025, NorthJersey.com, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported. Concerns over conditions inside and conflict between local and federal officials quickly followed.
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested by federal law enforcement on May 9, 2025 after accompanying several members of Congress on an oversight visit. One of the lawmakers, Rep. LaMonica McIver, was charged with assault after trying to prevent Baraka from being arrested. She has pleaded not guilty.
Four detainees escaped amid a riot over alleged food shortages and poor living conditions. Public scrutiny intensified again in December after Jean Wilson Brutus, a 41-year-old Haitian national, died just one day after arriving at the facility.
What do detainees, protesters want?
In May, hundreds of people detained at the facility launched a hunger strike, according to the ACLU of New Jersey. The New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice said detainees on the reported hunger strike are demanding freedom, not improved conditions.
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 coincide with the announced hunger strike.
"I’m fed up with my husband being treated like an animal," Soto said in a phone call with NorthJersey.com.
Protesters demanded the release of elderly, sick and vulnerable detainees and called on New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill to investigate the facility.
Lawmakers pepper-sprayed, blocked from facility
In the past few days, New Jersey Congress members Sen. Andy Kim and Reps. Rob Menendez, Nellie Pou, McIver, and Analilia Mejia have visited.
During a Memorial Day visit, Kim was pepper-sprayed along with other people outside the facility when he was trying to de-escalate tensions between protesters and ICE officers. Sherrill was not allowed into the facility.
Menendez made a previously scheduled visit to the detention center on May 26. He said that the strike continues because the conditions have not improved, as medical care is "non-existent" and several detainees have long-term health conditions.
He repeated his call from his previous visits that the facility should be closed.
"ICE's own data shows the individuals inside do not have criminal records," Menendez said. "The question remains, why are we holding our neighbors, our community members, in a detention center that can't do anything right."
Contributing: Lucas Frau, Nicholas Katzban, Katie Sobko and Manahil Ahmad, NorthJersey.com
Ricardo Kaulessar covers race, immigration, and culture for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
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