NYC-DSA STANDS IN SOLIDARITY WITH LEQAA KORDIA, CONDEMNS NYPD’s VIOLATION OF SANCTUARY LAWS
STATEMENT
May 13, 2025
Contact: press@socialists.nyc
NYC-DSA STANDS IN SOLIDARITY WITH LEQAA KORDIA, CONDEMNS NYPD’s VIOLATION OF SANCTUARY LAWS
NEW YORK, N.Y. – The New York City Democratic Socialists of America (NYC-DSA) stands in solidarity with Leqaa Kordia. We reaffirm our commitment to defending free speech, and condemn the ongoing criminalization by NYPD and ICE of our immigrant neighbors.
Kordia, a 32-year-old Palestinian woman from New Jersey, was arrested at a peaceful protest at Columbia University and given a disorderly conduct summons, later dismissed and sealed. Despite New York City’s sanctuary laws, in March, Eric Adams’ NYPD knowingly and illegally shared Kordia’s information with ICE. She was never charged with or convicted of a crime, but has since been interrogated, detained, and is facing deportation. If we allow this to happen, who will be targeted next?
NYC’s status as a sanctuary city is not a suggestion; it’s the law. For over three decades it has been reaffirmed by multiple mayoral administrations and strengthened by the City Council.
And yet, Eric Adams is betraying that legacy by selling out our neighbors to keep himself out of jail, holding up his end of a twisted bargain with the Trump administration. As the federal government sets fire to due process at home and clamps down on peaceful resistance to war crimes abroad, our city’s top leadership is fueling the far right’s flames of fascism.
Every time Adams goes on billionaire-owned media to demonize refugees as dangerous gang members, coordinates deportation raids of our immigrant neighbors with the NYPD, and advances his immoral designs to re-establish an ICE office on Rikers Island, he is attempting to destroy what makes our city great.
We won’t let him.
Together with our immigrant neighbors, we are the many — and those stoking the flames of division are the few. It’s time leaders across New York took a stand.
We call upon every New Yorker of conscience: demand more from your representatives, end ICE collaboration now!
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ABOUT NYC-DSA: New York City Democratic Socialists is the local chapter of Democratic Socialists of America—the largest socialist organization in the United States with over 85,000 members. NYC-DSA is run by its 8,000+ members and activists who are working together to build a democratic socialist organization in the five boroughs