By Tavon N. Thomasson
AFRO Intern
Maryland leaders expressed outrage on July 28 after being denied access to holding areas inside of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Baltimore Field Office. Despite federal law granting the legislators the right to conduct such visits, they were not allowed to view conditions inside of the office, located in the George H. Fallon Federal Building at 31 Hopkins Plaza.
In response to mounting concerns about prolonged detentions and limited medical and legal access for immigrants, the Maryland lawmakers scheduled a formal oversight visit to the Baltimore Field Office. However, when U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), and U.S. Representatives Kweisi Mfume (D-MD-07), Glenn Ivey (D-MD-04), Johnny Olszewski, Jr. (D-MD-02), and Sarah Elfreth (D-MD-03) arrived, Nikita Baker, acting director of ICE’s Baltimore Field Office, blocked their entry. Baker stated she was just following directions handed down to her.
“Instructions I’ve been given from our headquarters department [state] that at this time, we’re not allowing any visits to our hold room. The oversight that you’re talking about doesn’t fall over hold rooms and things of that nature,” Baker told the group of lawmakers.
The denial sparked a tense back-and-forth between the delegation and the ICE official, during which Rep. Mfume invoked a historical comparison, linking the current treatment of immigrants to the racial targeting of Black Americans in the not-so-distant past.
“I’m old enough to remember when Black people were snatched off the streets in this country, because they were Black—not because they committed a crime or [were] suspected of anything—and that was not that long ago,” Mfume told Baker. “That’s a perspective that haunts many of us. It certainly haunts me. And I would hope, as a Black woman coming out to tell us what you did without any real explanation, I hope later today, that sort of spirit haunts your soul—and that you realize [this] is more important than a job.”
Despite repeated attempts to get answers from Baker about the office’s operations, the delegation ultimately exited the building and addressed the press after concluding they would not be granted access. Outside the federal building, lawmakers condemned the denial as both a violation of federal law and a moral failure.
“We came here today to this ICE facility because it has become a hub of the inhumane Trump policies right here in the state of Maryland,” said Sen. Chris Van Hollen, during the press conference. “President Trump lied to the American people when he [claimed] the Trump administration was simply going to focus on ‘the worst of the worst.’”
Van Hollen’s reference to “the worst of the worst” highlights the Trump administration’s stated goal of targeting immigrants with serious criminal histories or ties to violence. He argued that, in reality, ICE is detaining people who pose no threat at all.
“There’s no disagreement that when you have people breaking the law and committing violent crimes that detention is appropriate and necessary,” said Sen. Van Hollen. “But that’s not what the Trump administration is doing, and that’s not what they’re doing [inside] that ICE office. That’s why they don’t want the American public to know what’s happening. That’s why they shut the door and locked us out.”
As the press conference closed, lawmakers emphasized the broader implications of what had just occurred.
“If this is how they’re treating their elected officials or members of Congress, how are they treating everyday Americans?” said Rep. Elfreth. “I would encourage folks to reach out to our offices if we can be of assistance.”