We Stand with Ras Baraka: Defending Immigrant Rights Is Not a Crime—It’s a Constitutional Duty

Today, we learned that Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka—one of the most vocal and consistent champions for justice—was arrested for trespassing while standing in defense of immigrant families. This is not just a political moment; it is a moral alarm bell ringing throughout our nation. When elected officials are criminalized for protecting human rights, we must ask: Who are the real lawbreakers here?

Ras Baraka: A Mayor for the People

Ras Baraka has never shied away from confronting injustice. Whether it's housing, education, police reform, or immigration, Baraka has led with courage. His arrest for defending immigrant rights is an attack not just on him—but on all of us who believe that families should never be torn apart, and that no human being is illegal.

The U.S. Government’s Violation of Human and Constitutional Rights

The federal government’s ongoing immigration enforcement policies—especially under the Trump administration and its lingering influence—have violated both domestic and international law:

1. Violation of the Fourth Amendment

ICE raids and warrantless entries into homes violate the Fourth Amendment, which protects against unreasonable searches and seizures. No judicial warrant? No entry. And yet, these violations continue under a false pretense of “security.”

2. Violation of the Fourteenth Amendment

The Fourteenth Amendment guarantees equal protection under the law. When immigrants—especially those of Black, Brown, or Indigenous descent—are disproportionately targeted, it is nothing short of racialized legal abuse.

3. Violation of International Human Rights Law

The UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which the U.S. helped draft, guarantees the right to seek asylum from persecution (Article 14). Family separation, detainment without due process, and deportation without hearings breach these standards.

4. Trump-Era Policies Still Haunt Us

The Trump administration’s cruel immigration policies—including family separations, ICE raids on churches and schools, and the public charge rule—created a system that weaponized fear. Many of these practices remain unchallenged or only partially undone. When a public servant like Baraka dares to speak truth to that legacy, he is met with handcuffs, not dialogue.

Arresting Ras Is a Political Message—And We Refuse to Be Silent

Let’s be clear: Mayor Baraka’s arrest is not about trespassing. It’s about silencing dissent. It's about intimidating local leaders who defend sanctuary policies. It’s about sending a message to immigrant communities: stay quiet or face retaliation.

But we are here to say: we will not be silent.

Standing with Ras Is Standing with Immigrants

Ras Baraka stood for us. Now we stand with him.

We call on:

• State and federal lawmakers to condemn this arrest publicly.
• Human rights and legal organizations to investigate the constitutional breaches that led to this moment.
• Communities nationwide to demand protections for elected officials who defend immigrant rights.

Injustice Anywhere Is a Threat to Justice Everywhere

To criminalize a man for defending families, for advocating for those without a voice, is to criminalize justice itself. Mayor Baraka's courage is a reminder that the real power lies with the people—and that the time to act is now.

References:

U.S. Constitution – National Archives
(https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/constitution-transcript)

Here’s the direct excerpt of the Fourth Amendment from that page:

Amendment IV – Search and Seizure
"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."

2. Violation of the Fourteenth Amendment

U.S. Constitution – Amendment XIV
🔗 https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/amendments-11-27#toc-amendment-xiv

The Fourteenth Amendment guarantees that “no state shall [...] deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

However, the disproportionate targeting of immigrants—particularly those who are Black, Brown, or Indigenous—by ICE, local police, and federal enforcement agencies represents a violation of this constitutional protection. Whether through racial profiling, selective enforcement, or biased legal outcomes, this is racialized legal abuse disguised as public safety.

3. Violation of International Human Rights Law

Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
🔗 https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights

The U.S., as a founding member of the United Nations, helped shape and adopt the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which outlines the inalienable rights of all people:

• Article 14: Right to seek asylum.
• Article 9: Freedom from arbitrary arrest or detention.
• Article 16: Right to family and protection of the family unit.

The separation of families, prolonged detention of asylum seekers, and forced deportations of people fleeing violence or persecution are in direct violation of these principles. When human dignity is ignored at our borders and in our courts, the United States is not upholding international law—it is breaking it.