From 9/11 to 26 Federal Plaza: How Fear Became Policy

Immigration enforcement in the U.S. was built on fear. Now it arrests elected officials for asking questions.

On September 18, 2025, eleven elected officials were arrested inside 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan. Among them were Comptroller Brad Lander, State Senators Jabari Brisport and Julia Salazar, Assembly Members Jessica González-Rojas and Marcela Mitaynes, and Council Members, including Tiffany Cabán. They had come not to protest in the traditional sense, b…