Story perspectives

Detainees Hunger Strike as DHS Halts Processing in Major Cities

5/30/2026

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Detainees Hungerstrike

Detention officials at Newark’s Delaney Hall said hundreds of detainees began a hunger strike, calling conditions inhumane.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin plans to halt processing in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, Denver, Newark and Philadelphia.
U.S. Travel Association warned airport restrictions could devastate travel industry and visitor-dependent communities.
ICE agents used pepper spray and arrested, while officials dismissed hunger strike as a stunt.

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Mullin Threatens

Mullin warned that continued local obstruction could force removal of Customs and Border Protection services from sanctuary city airports.
Immigration processing will halt in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, Denver, Newark and Philadelphia under DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said politics should not dictate flight availability for worldwide travelers.
President Donald Trump’s April 2025 order directs DOJ and DHS to sue jurisdictions defying immigration law.

History

Historical Context

In 1996 President Bill Clinton signed the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act, which broadened deportation powers, created the 287(g) partnership, and spurred deportations to climb from roughly 50,000 to over 200,000 by the 2000s. The law’s provision for federal lawsuits against sanctuary jurisdictions set a precedent that DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin invoked in his 2025 directive to sue cities defying immigration enforcement.

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Detainees Hungerstrike

Detention officials at Newark’s Delaney Hall said hundreds of detainees began a hunger strike, calling conditions inhumane.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin plans to halt processing in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, Denver, Newark and Philadelphia.
U.S. Travel Association warned airport restrictions could devastate travel industry and visitor-dependent communities.
ICE agents used pepper spray and arrested, while officials dismissed hunger strike as a stunt.

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