đ¨ Cuffed for Caring: Newarkâs Mayor Arrested for Daring to Have a Spine
Guess what happens when you challenge ICE and call out shady private prisons operating in your city without permission? If youâre Mayor Ras Baraka of Newark, New Jersey â you get arrested. Yup. Today, a sitting mayor got hauled off like a common criminal⌠for protesting a criminal facility. Welcome to fascist America, where the First Amendment gets detained and dissent gets handcuffed.
𧨠Political WTF of the Day:
- Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested while protesting outside Delaney Hall, an ICE detention facility in Newark that just reopened under a sketchy federal contract with the GEO Group (yes, the same private prison creeps).
- The facility is operating without proper permits and in defiance of local law. Baraka and three U.S. Representatives showed up to investigate â because apparently oversight is now trespassing.
- Homeland Security officers gave him the olâ âget off our lawnâ treatment, then charged him with trespassing. Because when fascists can’t silence you, they criminalize you.
Gov. Phil Murphy said he was âoutraged.â We love a good soundbite, Phil. Now how about some action?
đž TODAYâS TO-DO LIST:
- Flood your reps’ inboxes and phone lines â Demand they investigate Delaney Hall and stop the use of federal thugs to silence local leaders.
- Show up and show out â Join or organize protests at ICE detention centers. Bring your signs, your sass, and your camera.
- Donate to immigration justice orgs â Support legal defense funds and groups challenging ICEâs illegal ops (like RAICES and Detention Watch Network).
- Spread the word â Post this far and wide. When they come for mayors, theyâll come for anyone.
This isnât just about Newark â itâs about all of us. If a Black mayor canât protest without getting arrested, you know damn well no one is safe. Silence is complicity. Letâs get loud.
đĽ Sources:
- Politico: Newark Mayor Baraka arrested at ICE protest
- NBC New York: Baraka charged with trespassing after protest
- ABC7: NJ Governor âoutragedâ at arrest