The Department of Homeland Security is pushing back against accusations from New Jersey Democrats who say detainees at the Delaney Hall ICE detention center in Newark are being mistreated.
“There is no hunger strike at Delaney Hall. There are no subprime conditions or abuse at the facility,” acting DHS Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement released after protests outside the center during Memorial Day weekend.
Bis accused Democratic lawmakers of spreading “falsehoods” and “smears” about the facility while criticizing Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations.
“These sanctuary politicians should be thanking ICE law enforcement for removing murderers, rapists, pedophiles, and drug traffickers from their communities,” Bis said.
The comments came after several New Jersey Democrats publicly condemned conditions at the detention center and claimed tensions escalated between protesters and federal agents outside the facility on Monday.
Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., said he was among those affected by pepper spray during the demonstrations. In a post on social media, Kim described the situation as chaotic both inside and outside the facility.
“I saw chaos inside and outside of the ICE detention center Delaney Hall today,” Kim wrote.
Kim alleged that detainees had been protesting conditions inside the facility, including what he described as poor food quality, mistreatment, and a lack of due process protections.
“Instead of engaging with me and others about the poor conditions, ICE sent in an armored vehicle and a line of armed agents that only poured gasoline on the fire,” Kim said.
He also claimed civilians were “tackled and restrained” while federal agents deployed pepper spray and pepper balls into the crowd.
DHS denied those allegations and disputed claims that detainees were participating in a hunger strike or being held in unsafe conditions.
According to the department, detainees at Delaney Hall receive three meals a day, clean drinking water, bedding, clothing, showers, hygiene products, and access to communication with attorneys and family members.
The agency also said detainees have access to medical, dental, and mental health services while in custody.
“For many illegal aliens, this is the best healthcare they have received their entire lives,” DHS said in its statement.
The controversy surrounding Delaney Hall has drawn criticism from several prominent New Jersey Democrats. Sen. Cory Booker, Rep. Rob Menendez, Rep. Nellie Pou, Rep. LaMonica McIver, and Gov. Mikie Sherrill have all voiced concerns about conditions at the facility and called for it to be shut down.
Kim described the detention center as “a failure” and argued the facility should no longer remain open.
“The only way to make this right for our communities is to shut it down and make sure the failures we’ve seen never happen again,” Kim said.
