WE HAVE BEEN LIVE ON THE GROUND ALL 13 DAYS of the Delaney Hall ICE prison hunger strike and protests. Our crew HAVE BEEN INJURED while being shot at by flash bang grenades, tear gas, pepper balls, rubber bullets, pepper spray—and rushed at by police horses. We’ve been THREATENED WITH ARREST for broadcasting live—and REFUSED to leave. We CAN’T AFFORD TO CONTINUE without gaining at least 100 paid members over the next few days. PLEASE SUPPORT US for as low as $5 bucks a month (16 cents a day).
Status Coup has exclusively learned that the administration of Democratic New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill coordinated with the Department of Homeland Security/ICE on May 29th in advance of an imminent ICE shift change—and a brutal simultaneous attack by state police and ICE on unarmed protesters outside Delaney Hall ICE prison
A lead anti-Delaney Hall organizer—who is not part of the recent ICE protests sparked by the ongoing 14-day Delaney Hall prisoner hunger and labor strike—told Status Coup she received a call from the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office 15 minutes before NJ state police arrived in full militarized force on the streets outside Delaney Hall.
The organizer told Status Coup she was given a “heads up” from the AG’s office that an ICE shift change was imminent and "not to be alarmed" that police would be there to help facilitate the ICE shift change.
**WATCH OUR VIDEO ABOVE SHOWING NJ POLICE AND ICE ATTACKING PROTESTERS**
That facilitation by state police turned into a war zone on the streets of Newark.
What happened next was a simultaneous attack by NJ state police and ICE right before an ICE shift change at Delaney Hall.
We saw:
NJ state police firing flash bang grenades, tear gas, pepper balls, pepper spray
NJ state troopers on horseback using protesters on their horses (and us)
ICE agents in front of Delaney Hall ICE prison firing pepper balls at unarmed protester.
NJ state police helping to clear out the road for what we believe was a row of several ICE vehicles driving toward Delaney Hall.
***WATCH ALL OF THIS FROM OUR ON THE GROUND REPORTING IN VIDEO ABOVE***
The same anti-Delaney Hall organizer who told Status Coup about the 15 minute heads up they received from the state AG’s office—showing NJ police were coordinating with ICE—received a phone call the following day, on May 30, from the NJ AG’s office apologizing for the police violence the night before…
Violence that Democratic Governor Mikie Sherrill doubled down on the next night, unleashing her state troopers once again to attack unarmed protesters.
Governor Sherrill’s office and NJ Attorney General Jennifer Davenport’s office did not respond to Status Coup’s request for comment on why the governor’s administration—who has claimed to be opposed to ICE operations in New Jersey and the existence of Delaney Hall ICE prison—was in coordination with DHS and ICE ahead of an ICE shift change at Delaney Hall.
Neither the governor or AG responded to our request for comment.
Recently, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed a law limiting state police from cooperating with ICE.
We have been LIVE ON THE GROUND EVERY DAY of the now 13-day ICE prisoner hunger and labor strike at Delaney Hall. Working 18 hour days on little sleep, we have been shot at, tear gassed, violently pushed into oncoming truck traffic by ICE, and live-streamed for well over 30 hours over just a few days. Meanwhile, we ROUTINELY see MAINSTREAM MEDIA “journalist” sitting in the safety of there cars—waiting to go live on their networks and PRETEND they have been braving the violence.
If you are not yet a paying Status Coup member—for as low as $5 bucks a month—I kindly ask you to sign up TODAY. Honestly, we will not be able to stay ON THE GROUND much longer as expenses pile up. We are INDEPENDENTLY FUNDED and this type of reporting—paying staff, freelancers, for safety equipment, the cost just to go live for hours (it’s expensive), and travel costs—add up quickly. PLEASE SUPPORT US AS A PAYING MEMBER. You can also DONATE.
