When the Rev. George Dredden gave a phone interview about what he had experienced outside the Delaney Hall ICE detention facility the day before, he was still hoarse and coughing after being exposed to pepper spray.
Dredden, who serves as Priest for Community Engagement at Christ Church, Short Hills, went there along with the Rev. Dr. Miguel Hernandez of Holy Trinity, West Orange, and the Rev. Michael Muller of St. Peter’s, Mountain Lakes and his wife Liz Muller, to support family members protesting the treatment of their detained loved ones.
According to media reports, approximately 300 detainees at Delaney Hall launched a hunger strike the Friday before Memorial Day to draw attention to what they describe as inhumane conditions inside the facility. ICE officials deny both the existence of a hunger strike and allegations of substandard conditions.
When the group arrived at Delaney Hall around mid-morning on Memorial Day, Dredden described the gathering outside as peaceful and composed largely of detainees’ family members.
“People were singing songs,” he said. “Governor Mikie Sherrill was there, Senator Andy Kim, Representative Rob Menendez, some state assembly members. There was a lot of media.”
Dredden spoke on camera to a reporter from InsiderNJ.com (below). Hernandez can be seen standing behind Governor Sherrill in video coverage by CBS New York.
After a couple of hours talking with family members and listening to their stories, the Mullers left for another commitment, while Dredden and Hernandez took a lunch break. When they returned around 2 PM, Dredden said, “That’s when I noticed a big change.”
The crowd had grown larger, he said, and the atmosphere had become “a different tenor – a mixture of peaceful and aggressive.” Some protesters were forming a human barricade to prevent ICE vehicles from leaving. Meanwhile, federal authorities had brought in additional officers and an armored vehicle.
Hernandez said he witnessed Senator Kim attempting to de-escalate tensions between protesters and ICE agents when officers moved forward to clear a path for vehicles to leave the facility. During the confrontation, agents deployed pepper spray into the crowd. Kim later said he was also affected by the spray.
Dredden, who was near the pepper spray, credits reflexes developed during his 12 years in Maryland law enforcement with protecting him from the worst of it. He quickly turned away and, while he inhaled some of the spray, managed to avoid getting it in his eyes. Hernandez, who was farther away, was not affected.
According to Dredden, the situation calmed considerably after the vehicles departed and the additional officers left the immediate area. However, protests and periodic confrontations outside Delaney Hall have continued, and family visitation has reportedly been suspended. Hernandez said he expects demonstrations to continue as long as the hunger strike does.
Dredden, Hernandez, and Muller said they have heard repeated reports of harsh conditions inside Delaney Hall.
“No matter what people might think about illegal immigration, this is way beyond targeting illegal criminals,” Muller said.
“The country has the right to regulate immigration policies,” he continued, “but how about we do it in a humane way?”
The clergy members also said that many detainees appear to have no criminal record, and that some were actively pursuing legal immigration processes when they were detained.
“It’s the breadwinner that’s being detained for the most part,” Muller said, noting that detention often leaves families struggling financially.
All three priests spoke about the importance of a clergy presence outside Delaney Hall. Hernandez, who visits on the first Sunday of every month, described being asked by family members to provide pastoral care to detainees in emotional distress. Muller visits on the fourth Sunday of each month.
Dredden recalled a woman approaching him Monday and saying, “Thank God you’re here. I feel safer with you on the front lines.”
When asked whether he would return to Delaney Hall after being exposed to pepper spray, Dredden responded immediately: “Oh heck yeah!”
“We need to keep showing up,” he said. “There are certain times in your life when you can’t sit on the sidelines. You have to take a stand and get out of your comfort zone to do what is right.
“For clergy, when we took our vows, this is part of what we signed up for.”
