Jersey City Mayor James Solomon is calling for the release of a woman who was detained by five U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) while she was walking downtown on Friday, according to video footage of the incident.
Screenshot via Instagram Reel.
By Dan Israel/Hudson County View
“My office and JCPD are aware of reports that federal immigration officers arrested an individual in downtown Jersey City on Friday – we were neither notified of nor involved in the operation,” Solomon said in a statement.
“Based on the information we have, this person committed no crime and wasn’t a threat to our community. They should be released immediately and returned to their loved ones. Jersey City is a community of immigrants. Everyone deserves the right to safety in their community, without the threat of being abducted by federal agents.”
The incident occurred near the intersection of Barrow Street and Wayne Street on the morning of Friday, April 10th.
Shortly after taking office this year, Solomon signed an executive order strengthening sanctuary city protections in Jersey City.
Those protocols include citywide training and protocols for encounters with federal immigration authorities, banning the use of city property for immigration enforcement, and creating community partnerships for “know-your-rights” outreach and legal support.
However, that hasn’t stopped federal agents from conducting immigration enforcement in Jersey City from Downtown to the Heights, prompting responses from local and state officials from town halls with residents to proposing responsive legislation.
Video footage of the encounter between the ICE agents and a young woman was publicized on social media by Spirit of Liberation Jersey City (SOL).
Ward E Councilwoman Eleana Little, in response to SOL’s posts, encouraged anyone who knows the woman or has contact information for her friends or family to contact her office at elittle@jcnj.org.
“All over our city, these kidnappings result in our immigrant community members being transported to, and suffering in, concentration camps and black sites,” SOL said in a statement on Instagram accompanying the video.
“We should be deeply disturbed that the lack of awareness around ICE in our neighborhoods enables us to walk past this horrific event without intervening. Countless families live in fear around us and those who have already fallen victim to ICE’s terror are desperately fighting to locate and protect their loved ones … Urgently we must organize, mobilize, and continue to resist the invasion of ICE in Jersey City.”
The young woman was walking down the sidewalk before being approached by one law enforcement officer who grabs her arm and begins to talk to her, footage shows. Another agent approaches, and shortly after they begin to arrest her.
At that point, the video shows another three agents appear and take the woman’s bag and other personal items before she is escorted into an unmarked black SUV.
As of Monday afternoon, ICE did not return an email seeking comment asking for details about the arrest.