Make The Road New Jersey Applauds Mayor Solomon for Protecting Jersey City From ICE

JERSEY CITY, NJ — Today, Jersey City Mayor James Solomon issued a comprehensive executive order to protect city residents from ICE. The executive order was applauded by immigrants’ rights organizations and follows weeks of escalating violence at the hands of ICE across the country.

The executive order establishes citywide training protocols so city staff know how to respond to ICE, including requiring law enforcement to preserve body cam footage of ICE interactions. The order prohibits city resources from being used for immigration enforcement, and creates partnerships with nonprofits to expand know-your-rights trainings and legal support to community members.

“Every city across the state should be following Jersey City’s lead,” said Lauren Herman, Legal Director, Make the Road New Jersey, representing over 6,500 members across the state. “With this executive order, the city will now take proactive steps to make sure residents know their rights and city employees know what to do if ICE shows up. This order makes clear that Jersey City is a safe and welcoming city for all its residents and that our local resources will be used to support families, not terrorize them.”

In Trenton, a package of three immigrant protection bills passed both chambers, but two of the bills were pocket vetoed by Governor Murphy as he left office. In the new legislative session, there is growing momentum to re-introduce these bills and send them to Governor Mikie Sherrill’s desk. The proposals would codify the Immigrant Trust Directive and create new data protections so ICE cannot use sensitive state or healthcare data to spy on and target residents.

“We need to make sure everyone in New Jersey is protected against ICE,” said Lauren Herman. “This is not the time to sit idly by and hope the storm passes while a violent agency terrorizes our communities and separates families.”