[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 86 (Wednesday, May 20, 2026)]
[House]
[Page H3666]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       IMMIGRANTS DESERVE BETTER

  (Ms. MEJIA asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. MEJIA. Mr. Speaker, a year ago, I was an advocate standing 
outside Delaney Hall, a detention center in Newark, New Jersey, 
demanding our government treat immigrants with justice and human 
decency.
  I watched in horror as Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was dragged across a 
gate only to be arrested. I was appalled to see three of my now 
congressional colleagues manhandled with impunity. This week, when I 
returned to Delaney Hall with two of those same colleagues, I had my 
worst fears confirmed.
  Injustice and suffering are visible in plain sight. Pregnant women 
writhe in pain without care. An injured man wept in fear for his life, 
and more alarming, the staff of this facility are unprepared and unable 
to care for those in their custody.
  I may never forget the faces of those detainees begging for help. 
These people deserve the fullness of our Constitution and laws. These 
immigrants deserve humanity, and we must fight for justice if we wish 
to protect our own.

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