Brad Lander, over a dozen local politicians arrested at Manhattan Immigration Court
Controller Brad Lander and more than a dozen local elected officials were arrested on Thursday afternoon after asking to supervise a controversial detention center in the immigration court in downtown Manhattan.
The leaders were linked to the zipper and detained after requiring access to the detention cells on the 10th floor which became a detention center for immigration and customs in the 26 Federal Plaza. They tried to monitor the conditions of the establishment after a judge ordered the authorities on Wednesday to improve the conditions drawn up and dirty on the site.
In addition to Lander, the group included assemblies Marcela Mitaynes, Julia Salazar, Emily Gallagher, Jessica González-Rojas, Claire Valdez, Tony Simone and Steven Raga and the State Senators Jabari Brisport and Gustavo Rivera.
Arrests have also continued outside the courthouse, the agents of the Ministry of Internal Security holding the Public Defender Jumaane Williams, the members of the Tiffany Caban Council and the nurse Sandy and the member of the Phara Assembly Suffering Forrest.
Lander was released shortly after his arrest and it was planned that all the other elected officials would also be released quickly.
Lander has already been arrested at the courthouse in June when he supports immigrants from their legal proceedings.
“This afternoon, I faced an arrest alongside dozens of New Yorkers in non-violent civil disobedience to demand the surveillance of inhuman detention practices of the ICE,” public lawyer Williams said in a statement. “Even under this crawling authoritarianism regime, I expect to be released today to go home to my family, but the people for whom we fight have this privilege, because the ice disappears and deports them.”
