Nearly 40 Delaney Hall Women Launch Hunger Strike as Trump Signs $70 Billion ICE Funding Bill
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jun 12
Nearly 40 Delaney Hall Women Launch Hunger Strike as Trump Signs $70 Billion ICE Funding Bill
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jun 12
Summary
Nearly 40 women in Delaney Hall’s unit 1 began a hunger and labor strike, advocates said, demanding release for women under 21, mothers and those with medical conditions, plus faster case processing.
The women say they are protesting unsafe conditions, poor medical care, limited visitation, bad drinking water and abuse at the New Jersey facility run by Geo Group.
The action expands unrest at Delaney Hall after more than 300 detained men launched a similar strike on 22 May; advocates say about 90 detainees were transferred this week in retaliation.
DHS denied any hunger strike or abuse at the facility, while supporters and relatives rallied outside a day after Trump signed a $70 billion immigration enforcement spending bill.
Delaney Hall has become a flashpoint in a wider wave of detention-center strikes, with the ACLU counting nine in Washington state alone since 2026 began.
With detainee deaths at a 22-year high, who is accountable for medical care inside privately-run immigration centers?
Are 'voluntary departures' from ICE custody a free choice or a result of unbearable living conditions?
If government inspectors are denied full access, how can the public verify the safety of billion-dollar detention facilities?
2026 Delaney Hall Crisis: 1,373% Spike in Voluntary Departures and the National Immigration Detention Uprising
Overview
As of June 12, 2026, Delaney Hall and other U.S. immigration detention centers face a critical situation, with ongoing hunger strikes highlighting escalating concerns over detainee welfare. Detainees are risking their health to demand meaningful case reviews, an end to coerced deportation, better medical care, and the release of vulnerable individuals. These demands reflect a broader call for humane conditions, as deteriorating facility environments and expanded mandatory detention policies have pressured many to accept voluntary departure. The crisis underscores deep systemic issues and the urgent need for reform within the immigration detention system.