Anti-ICE protesters disperse during clashes with law enforcement officers outside the Delaney Hall detention center on Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo\/Angelina Katsanis)<\/small><\/p>\n
2026-06-06T21:27:58Z<\/p>\n
Clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement outside a New Jersey immigration detention center since late May have become the latest flashpoint for protests against President Donald Trump\u2019s immigration crackdown. <\/p>\n
More than 80 people have been arrested following a series of protests at Delaney Hall in Newark, where demonstrators say they are showing up in solidarity with detainees over accusations of poor living conditions. <\/p>\n
The Trump administration has defended the treatment of detainees at the 1,000-bed facility. <\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what to know:<\/p>\n
The facility is owned by Geo Group, a private prison contractor that runs multiple detention centers across the country. <\/p>\n
Detainees launched a hunger strike last month<\/a><\/span>, according Cosecha, an immigrant advocacy group. They issued a number of handwritten letters from inside with their demands, including improved living conditions and better medical care, as they say some are being denied medication.<\/p>\n Detainees across the country have alleged medical neglect<\/a><\/span> for serious and chronic conditions, and they have announced hunger strikes<\/a><\/span> at other facilities. <\/p>\n The Delaney Hall detainees say they are being given moldy and expired food, some of it with maggots, and are housed in overcrowded cells that lack air conditioning. Democratic members of Congress from New York City visited the facility early in the protests and said the detainees\u2019 accounts are credible. <\/p>\n President Donald Trump and his deputies have defended the center\u2019s operations and denied there is any hunger strike, abuse or poor conditions inside.<\/p>\n \u201cThe fact is, we\u2019re giving them the calories they want,\u201d Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said recently. \u201cThis isn\u2019t Holiday Inn.\u201d<\/p>\n Tom Homan, Trump\u2019s border czar, praised the food after a recent visit. \u201cThe spaghetti was good,\u201d he told CBS News.<\/p>\n GEO Group has dismissed the criticisms as \u201ca politically motivated campaign by outside groups to dismantle ICE and federal immigration detention by targeting the government\u2019s facility contractors.\u201d<\/p>\nTrump administration defends conditions <\/h2>\n