In Newark, New Jersey, today marks 11 days since hundreds of immigrants detained at the ICE jail known as Delaney Hall began a hunger and labor strike demanding their immediate release. Protesters and organizers continued to gather near the facility Sunday after New Jersey State Police erected a barricade about half a mile long around Delaney Hall’s perimeter. Activists have denounced New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill for deploying state police against protesters, with some officers wearing riot gear. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka has imposed a nightly curfew around Delaney Hall until further notice. There were reports of more arrests Sunday night as some protesters defied the curfew. Baraka’s move came after another weekend of clashes between protesters and law enforcement. New Jersey Governor Sherrill said family visitations at Delaney Hall were partially restored Sunday after the Department of Homeland Security suspended visits, citing the protests. Many organizers and relatives of detainees said they were denied entry to the facility after waiting for hours. This is Karen Merino, whose uncle Gabriel Merino has been jailed at Delaney Hall since August of last year. She said her uncle has lived in the U.S. for most of his life after migrating from Oaxaca, Mexico, as a teenager.

Karen Merino: “My uncle is starving to death in there. His molars have fallen out. It is chaotic in there. It is hell. … This is just like Auschwitz. It is history repeating itself. … My uncle is in one of the hunger-striking detention units. He is in there supporting this, but my uncle is feeling very weak, and I feel that he is dying in there. … He is in the detention unit where guards have beaten and assaulted detainees.”

Karen Merino’s uncle Gabriel has been at Delaney Hall since last August. She was speaking to Democracy Now!’s María Taracena. We will have more on Delaney Hall after headlines.