Nassau County police cooperate with ICE, sparks protests

By: Daniel Parada

Protestors gathered together outside of the Theodore Roosevelt Executive and Legislative Building in Mineola on Feb. 14 to protest the Nassau executive decision to fully cooperate with ICE in arresting migrants. This particular protest is in response to an announcement by the County Executive, Bruce Blakeman, to deputize ten county police detectives to assist ICE in their tasks.

Community leaders and union members made up many of the participating protestors, including members of the New York Civil Liberties Union, who have stated that the protest was a way to “demonstrate love and support for the Long Island immigrants, many of whom are living in fear due to an escalation of ICE activity in their communities.” NYCLU regional director, Susan Gottenhrer, believes that immigrants are being criminalized on the basis that they are undocumented. During the event, Gottenhrer said, “Immigration is considered civil law, not criminal law. To say that undocumented people are criminals just by virtue of being undocumented is a willfully false statement, and leaders who say it are betting on the public’s lack of knowledge around this.” 

Protestors also noted the increased hesitancy among immigrants to go out into public in fears that they might be stopped. “We have less people participating in our society, because now they are living in fear. ” says County Legislator Carrié Solages, “The effect of what [Blakeman] did now will be devastating to Nassau County.” Additionally, Solages made mention of reports that there has been a decrease in school attendance, and that crime is being reported less, implying that the public is now more dissuaded to contact emergency services.

This escalation is part of a much broader push by newly elected president Donald Trump, whose policies on illegal immigration have been more strict since Joe Biden left office. In his February 4th announcement, Blakeman stated that the collaboration between the Nassau County Police and ICE is meant to catch illegal immigrants that have already committed some form of crime, and is not meant to be a way to turn in every illegal immigrant within Nassau County, “I want to stress that this program is about illegal migrants who have committed crimes. This isn't about raids. This is targeted enforcement of our laws based here in the state of New York, people who have committed crimes here, and have violated federal laws by being in the United States illegally”. Blakeman has additionally refuted claims that police are to be “raiding” schools or churches.

Bruce Blakeman began his re-election campaign last Monday. To a Massapequa crowd, he listed some of his actions as the county executive which included the decision to allow police to work with ICE. Although he has yet to respond to the protests, he appears confident in his decision; what effect these protests will have on his re-election remains to be seen.