On Friday, we published an article on Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka’s gubernatorial campaign that speaks about the political phenomenon his campaign represents. As that article was being published, the Department of Homeland Security arrested Baraka outside of the Delaney Hall ICE detention facility in Newark, representing a clear escalation of attacks on democratic rights. Designed to hold up to 1,000 migrants, the Newark ICE facility is expected to be a key site in President Trump’s mass deportation agenda.
The nature of Baraka’s arrest is alarming, and follows the trend of Trump’s ability to strengthen the repressive apparatus of the state.
In the process of arresting Baraka, masked federal officials also assaulted several members of Congress. This is a clear and dangerous escalation in the Trump administration’s war on immigrants and the movement against ICE. Hundreds quickly gathered in Newark, demanding, and eventually securing the mayor’s release.
Baraka’s arrest comes as activists in NJ are fighting the expansion of ICE detention in the state, including Delaney Hall and a potential new center at Union County Jail. Activists are also fighting to close the notorious Elizabeth Detention Center and to protect a statewide ban on privately run ICE detention facilities. For years, NJ has been the site of a dynamic fight against ICE. It is no wonder the Trump administration is trying to attack the movement. The arrest of Baraka shows just how far the Right will go to pursue its war on immigrants.
Socialists, activists, unions, and the Left more broadly should condemn his arrest, which represents another one of Trump’s authoritarian attacks on democratic rights and the movements that resist his reactionary program. As revolutionary socialists, we must do this while maintaining a class independent position that recognizes that a mass movement, and not the election campaign of any candidate, is the way we defeat Trump.
While the attack on Baraka must be fiercely opposed as part of the fight against the Far Right, there is a risk that the dynamic immigrant rights movement may tie itself to Baraka’s campaign for governor. This would be a mistake, as the Democratic Party has shown itself to be the graveyard of social movements time and again. In fact, it was the Biden administration that attacked NJ’s state ban on ICE detention, setting the stage for the build-up activists are fighting today. Baraka is telling activists to rely on the Democratic Party and the courts to challenge ICE.
The danger of channeling our efforts to Baraka’s campaign is that it takes away the power of the movement that Baraka himself is responding to and trying to win votes from.
Baraka was detained for several hours after refusing orders to leave the premises. Video shows he was taken into custody outside the gates, in a public area with many protesters and press.
His arrest, carried out by masked federal agents in military fatigues, should sound the alarm for all who care about civil liberties and immigrant rights. If a Democratic Mayor can be arrested like that, imagine what this means for regular people. That is why we have to oppose his arrest and any charges the Trump administration may bring. Alongside this, we must raise the need to mobilize to shut down Delaney Hall, abolish ICE, and secure civil rights for all immigrants, regardless of their status.
The movement needs to have faith in its own collective power to close Delaney Hall and beat back all attacks from the Far Right. This means maintaining a revolutionary perspective in the anti-ICE movement, which sees capitalists and their parties not as allies, but as opposition to winning our demands. The anti-ICE movement in NJ can win by putting forward our own collective power as workers, immigrants, and communities united in our fight against ICE and the capitalist system that relies on xenophobia and state violence.
