Amidst a rising number of unlawful kidnappings and deportations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, New Jersey has banned all law enforcement officers, including federal immigration agents, from wearing masks.
New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill signed a bill Wednesday that prevents officers from concealing their identity while engaging with the public in any official capacity. It also requires agents to identify themselves before making an arrest. (It includes exceptions for officers working undercover.)
It was one of three pieces of legislation signed by Sherrill to protect immigrant rights across the state and push back against Trump’s unlawful immigration agenda, a promise she campaigned on before taking office in January. A nearly identical bill was vetoed by former Governor Bill Murphy in his final day of office.
“As we’ve seen across the country, Donald Trump’s untrained, unaccountable, masked ICE agents are putting people in danger,” Sherrill said in a statement. “That’s why in New Jersey, we are protecting our communities – strengthening our protections, banning ICE agents from wearing masks, and protecting residents’ privacy from federal overreach.”
The bill comes as ICE ramps up violence, kidnappings, and deportations across the country. Following Trump’s orders, federal officers have mostly recently taken to arresting people at airports without identifying themselves, plummeting public approval of the agency to an all-time low. Recent polling from YouGov shows that a record-high 50 percent of Americans either somewhat or strongly support abolishing ICE entirely.
The Trump administration has been harshly critical of mask bans, claiming without justification that they are unconstitutional. In February, a federal judge blocked a similar law passed in California that prevents federal agents from wearing masks.
But Sherrill offers a rare glimmer of hope for those in the Garden State, which is home to one of the highest immigrant populations in the U.S. Along with the mask ban, the Democratic governor also passed legislation that bars healthcare facilities from requesting a person’s confidential information like their address and immigration status, as well as a bill that limits when local and state law enforcement have to comply with federal immigration enforcement.
“I can’t believe we have to say this, but in the United States of America, we’re not going to tolerate masked, roving militias pretending to be well-trained law enforcement agents,” she said at a bill-signing ceremony Wednesday.
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