Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested during a protest at Delaney Hall, an immigrant detention facility located in New Jersey. The private, for-profit company GEO Group runs this facility. Since it opened on May 1, it has come under fire for not having the proper permitting in place. Baraka has been a vocal opponent of the facility for years. He found the inhumane treatment of immigrants there to be inhumane and has protested outside its gates repeatedly to let them know.
On May 9, Baraka joined members of Congress LaMonica McIver, Bonnie Watson Coleman, and Rob Menendez. Collaboratively, they assumed leadership for managing the facility’s day-to-day operations. Their visit was part of an ongoing effort to ensure compliance with legal standards and determine the conditions inside Delaney Hall. When this oversight visit occurred, Baraka was arrested for trespassing by the Trump administration.
Yet the government’s complaint directly states that Baraka illegally entered and remained in the facility after being repeatedly ordered to leave. After the court proceedings, he was booked into custody by the United States Marshals Service. If found guilty, Baraka faces a maximum of 30 days in jail time.
The transient defense As noted above, trespassing is often a go-to charge for police trying to remove encampments from public land. They maintain that the Trump administration politically and selectively targeted him for prosecution. The move was a direct result of her intense opposition to the detention center and their practices.
“Today, the U.S. Attorney General’s office chose to move forward with a trial over trespassing charges at Delaney Hall. While the charges are unwarranted, we will fight this,” – Ras Baraka
To be sure, Baraka is not an accidental tourist here — he has been invited inside this tent. To prove it, he released a video on social media featuring a prison guard opening the gate for him. It did not help that he publicly defended what he had done, claiming that his actions were appropriate and required of an elected leader.
“This is bigger than me. It’s about all of us,” – Ras Baraka
In this advocacy, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) supported Baraka’s position. They claimed he was participating in an approved congressional member oversight visit.
“Mayor Baraka was at Delaney Hall to join a tour of the detention facility with a congressional delegation as part of their authorized oversight responsibilities,” – American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
Though indicted, Baraka remains a key player in New Jersey politics. Plenty of people see him—as do we—as a front-runner for the 2025 gubernatorial election. He was widely quoted with anger about what had happened, claiming that political motivations caused his being arrested.
“They’re trying their best to humiliate and degrade me as much as they possibly can,” – Ras Baraka
Baraka’s defense of his actions went even deeper, claiming that his appearance at Delaney Hall was a defense of constitutional principles.
“I feel like what we did was completely correct. We did not violate any laws. We stood up for the constitution of this country, the constitution of the state of New Jersey,” – Ras Baraka
The incident at Delaney Hall sheds light on the public’s outrage over immigration enforcement and the use of detention in the United States today. As the legal battles continue, Baraka’s case is now the most prominent among them. It will hopefully lead to the most important conversations about civil rights and government accountability.
