Photo by Jordan Coll / SOC Images. Edited by Adrienne J. Romero / SOC Images with screenshot courtesy of City of Jersey City.
The terms of democracy were laid out in a press conference by local governing officials and public figures who spoke against the “unconstitutional raids” under the Trump administration, arguing that the policies have emboldened a surge in ICE enforcement nationwide—stoking fear and animosity in communities.
“What we’re witnessing right now in America is an assault on immigrant families,” said James Solomon, mayor of Jersey City. “We have to call it what it is. Masked agents pulling people out of their homes, parents separated from children, workers dragged out of courthouses.”
He called the actions amassed by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids, “a disgrace to everything our country stands for.” The press conference was held next to the Statue of Liberty, which has stood as a beacon of hope for generations of immigrants who arrived in the U.S. seeking a new start.
Slice of Culture reported on the contributions of immigrants in Hudson County, which is home to more than 72,000 residents without legal status and more than 40% of Jersey City residents born outside the U.S., as cited by the mayor.
Solomon noted the indiscriminate arrests made by ICE enforcement, “When you unleash this kind of force (ICE), it does not check papers first. There is no version of an attack of America’s immigrant communities that is clean, surgical or humane.”
To read Jersey City’s full executive order, you can view it here.
For the past months and several weeks, the ICE raids have deepened a national divide, plaguing outrage among immigrant communities across the country.
The recent detention of a father and his five-year-old son, Liam Ramos, by ICE agents at their Minnesota driveway has brought on serious questions about the agency’s judicial overreach and the aggressive enforcement tactics employed by ICE.
While U.S. administration officials defend the operations as critical to enforcing immigration laws and targeting criminal offenders, critics argue the aggressive tactics tear apart families, fuel mistrust and threaten basic human rights.
“Remember that immigrants are not an addition to the American story. They are the American story.”
– Solomon, acknowledging the immigrant story in Jersey City.
The executive mandate signed off by the mayor sets three clear priorities:
- Requiring training for all city employees on engagement when it comes to facing ICE agents
- A restriction on the use of city properties for ongoing ICE operations
- Expanded legal support through nonprofit collaborations such as Know-Your-Rights outreach
“We will not be bullied into treating an administrative detainer as a court order,” Solomon added. “When immigrant families live in fear, they stop reporting crimes, taking children to school, or seeing doctors—and that makes everyone less safe.”
He added that the executive order limits the scope of approach in its directive.
“It does not obstruct lawful federal activity conducted with proper judicial authority. Federal authorities who have a valid criminal court will comply,” said the mayor. “That’s the law.”
A recent memo obtained by the Associated Press shows ICE Director Todd Lyons authorized agents to “forcibly enter into certain people’s homes without a judicial warrant, consent or an emergency.”
“We know that Trump lied about what his immigration enforcement would look like,” said New Jersey Congressman Rob Menendez Jr., also at the press conference, who stated that ICE’s own figures indicate “the people they are detaining and separating families and their communities are not criminals.”
Menendez echoed the need to stand together with the immigrant community amidst the emboldened ICE raids sheered by the Trump administration, who approved an $85 billion budget for ICE enforcement.
Nearly a decade ago ICE’s budget was less than $6 billion within the Department of Homeland Security.
New Jersey Congresswoman LaMonica McIver was also present and spoke against what she framed as the Trump administration distorting truth to the American people, a symptom to a larger problem ushered in by the executive governance.
“They are deporting people with cancer and killing American citizens in broad daylight, right in front of your faces and then lying to you, ” she said. “Last week in New Jersey, a six-year-old was found wandering the streets because her father was detained while getting her food. We will not hand over our power to ICE.”
“We are in a state of emergency. This country is in a state of emergency with this president,” she echoed this sentiment to the public and members of the press.
State Sen. Raj Mukherji, called diversity “a strength to be embraced,” urged the legislature to pass previously vetoed bills that would codify the Immigrant Trust Directive and safeguard privacy. Those rejected bills remain in limbo at the time of this writing.
“My own son is six, the same age as Liam,” Mukherji said. “It is complicated to explain ICE to children when we teach them to respect uniforms.”
Referring to state legislation known as the Immigration Trust Act, Amol Sinha, head of ACL-NJ, told the public at the presser, “I was disappointed with the Murphy administration, but I am encouraged we are going to see these bills pass with the next administration.”
Additionally, Murphy allowed two key immigrant-protection bills to expire without his signature, a decision that frustrated immigrant rights advocates who had long pushed for their passage.
However, Murphy did sign the Safe Communities Act (A6308/S5036), mandating the state attorney general to create uniform policies for schools, hospitals, courts, shelters and places of worship on how to respond to visits from federal immigration authorities.
The other two bills ended in the legislative session, effectively killing them for now. Advocates warned that the decision could leave immigrant families vulnerable at a time when federal immigration enforcement has intensified.
Following suit, came New Jersey Assemblyman Gabriel Rodriguez who described seeing nine unmarked cars outside his daughter’s school.
“This fear undermines public safety,” he said. “I was proud to sponsor the Immigration Trust Act to restore trust between communities and government.”
“We want our communities to be informed, for those workers who do not have legal representation can at least know they have rights,” said Luz Garate, district leader of 32BJ, a union organization, speaking to Slice of Culture. “We hope with the new governor stepping in [Mikie Sherill] we can have protections.”
In New Jersey, there’s a number of organizations, coalitions and nonprofits that work to assist undocumented individuals and families for free through educational classes and workshops, legal representation and more.
- Make The Road New Jersey
- The Waterfront Project
- New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice
- NJ Consortium for Immigrant Children
Have more recommendations? Reach out to [email protected].
