“Masked ICE agents behaving like goons stationed outside of the courtroom to kidnap our neighbors — that was already egregious and violent, we are now seeing further lawlessness from the Trump administration,” Senator Salazar said.
Photo by Dean Moses
A slew of elected officials followed in the footsteps of Comptroller Brad Lander on Thursday and looked to help escort immigrants out of Federal court but instead they found themselves in the cold hands of ICE.
When Lander, who was arrested by ICE last month while overseeing immigration hearings, returned to court on June 26, he challenged other politicians to step up and bear witness to what a “violent theatre of disappearance.” Several council members, assembly members, and even a senator took the challenge to heart.
Council Member Alexa Avilés, Chair of the NYC Council Committee on Immigration and State Senator Julia Salazar where joined be several others including Assembly Member Marcela Mitayne and Council Member Sandy Nurse on July 3 on several floors inside 26 Federal Plaza where they sat in on court hearings and watched helplessly as immigrants were whisked away in a scene of ensuing chaos.
“Masked ICE agents behaving like goons stationed outside of the courtroom to kidnap our neighbors — that was already egregious and violent, we are now seeing further lawlessness from the Trump administration,” Senator Salazar said, describing the moment a young man was taken away in front of her eyes. “His hearing was rescheduled for a future date and he was being unlawfully detained.”
Chaos ensued as ICE agents, elected officials, press, lawyers, court observers, and those just attempting to attend their hearings all packed the long corridors. When the Feds, who skulked outside of the courtrooms at the ready, pounced, all hell broke loose. The armed agents pushed back the surrounding crowd, yelling and screaming as they strong-armed people into a nearby stairwell.
During amNewYork’s previous documentations, Trump’s immigration enforcement has always removed people into awaiting elevators from where they transfer them to the detainment facility on the 10th floor. However, on July 3, they roughly shoved them into the stairwell and handcuffed them. The masked individuals performing the arrests were made up of several different agencies, including Border Patrol, FBI, and the ATF.
“They are being abducted by masked, armed agents in many circumstances, and it’s unclear what agency they even represent. This is abhorrent. It is frightening. There are people with children,” Council Member Alexa Avilés said. “Remember that this is happening with our taxpayer dollars. When we should be caring for our communities, we are supercharging this rogue agency to actually break the law.”
As previously reported by amNewYork, elected officials confirmed that it is open season on immigrants as ICE has reportedly started taking those who have been granted a reappearance date. On Thursday, it was almost akin to an assembly line as the agents wrapped their arms behind their backs and took them out of sight. They were then quickly escorted to the 10th floor, but what happened next is not exactly clear.
An ICE representative has openly admitted that many of those detained are forced to sleep on benches and even on the ground. However, their exact treatment and how long they have been kept there are not clear.
“People are being told to show up for their court hearings or their ice check-ins, and continuously being tricked, trapped, snatched and then disappear from our communities,” Murad Awawdeh, CEO and President of the New York Immigration Coalition, said.
If the “Big Beautiful Bill” passes, it would increase federal immigration enforcement funding by $100 billion through 2029 and expand its powers, adding an exponential amount of fuel to President Donald Trump’s deportation goals. In addition, the funding will add 10,000 more deportation officers to its already 6,000 agents.
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