Advocates call on Biden to help, not hinder, progress made
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: media@freedomforimmigrants.org
TRENTON, N.J. – New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy today signed into law legislation that prohibits the state from entering into or renewing local and private contracts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), marking a momentous victory in the movement to end the detention of immigrants.
For years, communities across the state alongside people in detention have pushed to free immigrants from New Jersey immigrant prisons and end the state’s involvement in the federal government’s immigration detention system. New Jersey becomes the fifth state to pass legislation that would ban or limit immigration detention, a system that is rife with human rights abuses.
Freedom for Immigrants, a national organization working to abolish immigration detention, joined communities and advocates in celebrating the legislative victory and calling on the Biden administration to advance the progress made, starting with the release of every immigrant who remains detained in the state.
The following statement is from Tania Mattos, policy and northeast monitoring manager with Freedom for Immigrants.
“Freedom for Immigrants applauds Governor Murphy and the Legislature for taking historic action to end New Jersey’s complicity in the dehumanizing immigration detention system. This hard-fought victory reflects the resilience and tenacity of our communities – and reaffirms that our vision of a world without detention is within reach.
“It’s now up to President Biden and his administration to build on the momentum of this victory and release the remaining immigrants in the New Jersey facilities. By directing ICE to conduct releases rather than transfers, President Biden can be on the right side of history and work to help, not hinder, the progress New Jersey communities and lawmakers have made.”