AMNY
Adam Daly & Lloyd MitchellPosted on
ICE agents wearing masks line the halls of the 12th floor at 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan on Friday. The agents remained stationed outside immigration courtrooms, where multiple individuals were detained following their hearings
Photo by Lloyd Mitchell
As arrests of immigrants continued inside 26 Federal Plaza on Friday, protesters gathered outside to denounce the detainments and the Trump administration’s policies through a noise demonstration, blowing the whistle on ICE.
During the hour that amNewYork monitored courtrooms on the federal building’s 12th floor Friday morning, three individuals were apprehended by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents as they left immigration hearings. The individuals were then escorted to a holding facility located two floors below.
Now a common sight at the building, federal agents wearing face coverings and hats to conceal their identities remained on standby to detain people they say are in the country illegally, but who arrive at the facility to attend mandatory immigration court hearings.
Reverend Este Gardner of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church joined protesters from Refuse Fascism outside the building, calling attention to the woman’s detention following a rescheduled immigration hearing.
“She had a hearing that was set for October, and they called her up and said, ‘Good news, you can come tomorrow. We’re moving your process right along,’” Gardner said during the demonstration. “And of course, after the hearing, she was detained. We had no idea where they took her.”
Rev. Este Gardner joins a protest outside 26 Federal Plaza on Aug. Gardner said she came to the courthouse seeking information about a detained congregant and decided to join the demonstration in solidarity. Photo by Lloyd Mitchell