Overview
- Organizers and attorneys say roughly 300 detainees began a hunger and labor strike on May 22 to protest conditions inside Delaney Hall and to press for release or better treatment.
- Lawyers and family members report rotten or expired meals, including food with worms, and say some detainees have been denied timely medical care for conditions such as cancer, diabetes and pregnancy‑related needs.
- Protests outside the Newark facility have repeatedly turned violent as federal officers used pepper spray and pepper balls, detained and arrested several people, and DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin publicly denied a systemic hunger strike while announcing arrests.
- Multiple members of Congress and New Jersey officials have sought access, described dire conditions after limited tours, said some strikers were moved or placed in solitary, and called for independent inspections or closure of the privately run site.
- Delaney Hall is a roughly 1,000‑bed facility operated by The GEO Group under a 2025 ICE contract, and the standoff has raised fresh scrutiny of private detention oversight, possible investigations and legal challenges that could affect detainees’ lives and federal contracting.