Rise and Resist agitator celebrates 'relaxed' NYPD approach to anti-ICE actions under Mamdani

NYPD officers were noticeably absent on Tuesday night when anti-ICE agitators occupied the lobby of a Hilton Garden Inn in Manhattan's Tribeca neighborhood, signaling an apparent shift in dynamics between law enforcement and protesters under new Mayor Zohran Mamdani's leadership. Demonstrators targeted the hotel on unfounded claims that ICE agents had been staying there. NYPD officers did not immediately respond to the incident.

While dozens of individuals were eventually arrested for trespassing, independent journalist Paul Rossi highlighted warnings that the NYPD has become more accommodating to such actions since Mamdani, a socialist, took office earlier this month.

In a video posted by Rossi, a member of the group Rise and Resist said, "The police have become much more accommodating under the new mayor," noting changes in how the NYPD handles protests, such as allowing megaphones and letting protesters set up shop close to buildings without law enforcement barriers. "It's been much more relaxed," he added.

Activists from groups like Rise and Resist, part of the broader ICE Watch network, stormed the lobby around 7 pm, chanting slogans such as "Up, up with liberation, down, down, with deportation" and holding signs reading "Hilton: Stop Housing ICE" and "Abolish ICE." Demonstrators accused the hotel of aiding ICE agents involved in what they described as "terrorizing communities," including making lawful arrests, which they referred to as "kidnappings," Pix11 reported.

One speaker declared, "These are the same ICE agents who are terrorizing our communities, kidnapping our neighbors, abducting mothers and children from their court dates, places of work, and off the streets, and murdering anyone who gets in their way," referencing recent fatal shootings of anti-ICE agitators Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minnesota. The occupation lasted for over an hour before NYPD officers intervened.

According to police, approximately 60 to 70 protesters were arrested and charged with trespassing after refusing to leave the hotel lobby. Rossi stated in his post on X, "If you're wondering where the cops are, remember Mamdani is the mayor. Activists are bolder because they know they will be given more leeway."

Rossi, a former private school teacher who was relieved from his duties after speaking out against what he described as education "indoctrination," has been monitoring far-left anti-ICE groups in New York for weeks. His reporting has highlighted these networks' strategies to "open multiple fronts" across the US to distract federal agents, including calls to label immigration enforcement as "ethnic cleansing."

A spokesperson for Mayor Zohran Mamdani's Office said the mayor "commends" the protesters for exercising their rights. "As he has said, ICE is a rogue agency that has repeatedly carried out cruel, inhumane, and lawless raids and arrests of American citizens. The Mayor is also pleased with the NYPD's response to the protest and that today's demonstration concluded without violence."