Democrat Senator ‘Pepper Sprayed’ During Anti-ICE Riot
Published 44 minutes ago
on May 26, 2026
By Trinity Hallinan
Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., said he was pepper-sprayed Monday as demonstrators swarmed outside Delaney Hall, an immigration detention facility in Newark, during a tense scene involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.
Videos circulating online showed mutual aid volunteers pouring water into Kim’s eyes while he held an ice pack. Other clips appeared to show Kim talking directly to ICE agents near a detained individual and then turning to address protesters outside the facility.
Kim later described what he said was a volatile standoff at the detention center, where about 300 migrants are holding what advocates call a hunger and work strike over conditions inside the facility.
“Detainees protesting the lack of due process, the disgusting food and poor treatment while their families and advocates stood outside calling for help,” Kim wrote on X. “Instead of engaging with me and others about the poor conditions, ICE sent in an armored vehicle and a line of armed agents that only poured gasoline on the fire.”
Kim said he saw ICE agents tackle and restrain demonstrators, while “agents fired pepper balls and spray into the crowd.”
“What I witnessed and experienced today was shameful,” Kim said. “Delaney Hall is a failure; it’s this administration’s failure. The only way to make this right for our communities is to shut it down and make sure the failures we’ve seen never happen again.”
Kim was at the site alongside other New Jersey Democrats, including Gov. Mikie Sherrill and Reps. Rob Menendez, LaMonica McIver and Nellie Pou, for what lawmakers described as an oversight visit. Sherrill and Menendez said they were denied access after they initially arrived. Photos showed multiple elected officials outside the building speaking with demonstrators.
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