Overview

• On August 8, NYPD officers arrested 14 demonstrators for blocking the intersection near 26 Federal Plaza during a sit-in pressing for an unfettered inspection of the site’s tenth floor.
• Protesters argue that migrants are being covertly detained on the tenth floor in overcrowded, furniture-free rooms without proper sanitary facilities or legal counsel access, citing video released in July.
• DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin maintains the location serves only as a processing center where individuals receive meals, medical care and opportunities to contact family and lawyers before transfer.
• Requests by Representatives Dan Goldman and Jerry Nadler, as well as faith leaders seeking to meet detainees, have been repeatedly denied by federal authorities.
• The protest highlights a broader national surge in ICE enforcement and expanded detention capacity since June, spurring immigrant advocates to call for greater transparency and oversight.