A week after federal agents arrested sellers on Canal Street during an immigration sweep, street vendors teamed up with delivery workers to push for better conditions and more protections in their immigrant-heavy industries.

Delivery workers and street vendors rallying outside City Hall on Oct. 29, 2025. (Gerardo Romo / NYC Council Media Unit)

A week after federal agents arrested sellers on Canal Street during an immigration sweep, street vendors teamed up with delivery workers to push for better conditions and more protections in their immigrant-heavy industries during a rally Wednesday morning.

While the protections that each group is requesting won’t completely shield them from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) arrests, advocates for both groups say city policies—enforced by the NYPD, through the issuance of criminal tickets—have placed delivery workers and street vendors on the immigration enforcement radar.

After ICE Director Todd Lyons said “more arrests” will come to the city, these workers are bracing for what’s to come.

“The moment is now,” said Mohamed Attia, managing director of the Street Vendor Project, during a rally outside City Hall Wednesday. “Because it is our deliveristas and street vendors who are under attack like never before.”

During Wednesday’s rally, advocates and workers in these industries asked the City Council, in its few remaining sessions this year, to pass a series of bills, including legislation that would prohibit app-based delivery services from deactivating workers without cause. 

With deactivation, a worker’s account is permanently terminated. But beyond major policy violations, delivery workers and advocates say there’s no clear definition of what triggers a deactivation, which means losing the ability to work for the app. 

“Please pass those bills,” said Cellou Balde, a delivery worker with the group Los Deliveristas during the rally. “People in New York are often complaining about delivery workers. We are traveling fast. We understand the concern, but often we have no choice. We must take the risk to deliver quick, often on an impossible time frame, to avoid losing our job that we have. Deactivation is a huge problem for our community, because this work is how we survive.” 

Instacart didn’t respond to City Limits’ request for comment on the bill and its deactivation policies. Grubhub says it’s been working with Los Deliveristas Unidos and the City Council to make its process transparent. The company criticized the Council’s bill, saying it would take away its ability to act quickly to enforce their standards, which is essential for public safety.

“As written, Intro 1332 would require platforms to keep drivers active despite serious safety or service issues and could expose sensitive customer information—putting diners, restaurant workers, and other drivers at risk,” a Grubhub spokesperson said in a statement.

Kassandra Perez-Desir, DoorDash’s head of government relations in New York, cited similar safety concerns. “We agree that deactivations should be rare and handled fairly, but this model is a recipe for harm for everyone who depends on a safe platform. The Council should look to proven models that better balance fairness with accountability.”*

Uber said that it supports the main idea of the new law, but not its details as drafted. “The bill must focus on workers who have permanently lost access to delivery apps,” an Uber spokesperson said in a statement, a reference to another practice of “lockouts,” which blocks workers from using the apps at certain times.

The Council bill would also address lockouts, using a broad definition of “deactivation” as a permanent or temporary restriction to access the app.

“Since delivery workers are paid for all of their time on the app—not just when a delivery is made—app companies must control costs by limiting the number of people who can work simultaneously, just like every other business. Otherwise, thousands of workers could be online and being paid when there is little or no delivery activity, which would significantly increase consumer costs,” an Uber spokesperson said in a statement.

Another set of bills would reform street vending in the city by expanding licenses, eventually lifting a long-held cap on that number, which workers say has made it hard for them to operate legally (though the Council recently passed legislation—overriding a mayoral veto—that decriminalized vending without a license, something sellers had long called for).

The bills would also create a vendor division within the Department of Small Business Services, make more applications available so that the maximum 445 supervisory licenses are issued every year, and allow vending farther from the curb.

Street vendors near the 7 train Junction Blvd station in Queens in 2024. (Adi Talwar/City Limits)

The push comes after the Adams administration ramped up enforcement in the delivery and vending sectors. During the spring, the NYPD quietly stopped giving civil traffic tickets to cyclists—now issuing criminal tickets instead. In addition, on Oct 24, New York City implemented a 15 mile per hour speed limit for e-bikes, e-scooters, and pedal-assist commercial bicycles.

When the changes were announced, Mayor Eric Adams said the city would take an education-first approach, and enforcement second, issuing warnings to first-time offenders. “To be clear, this isn’t about criminalization; it’s about creating safer, fairer conditions for all New Yorkers,” Adams said.

While the NYPD is giving warnings at the moment, they haven’t said exactly when police will start handing out criminal tickets when asked by City Limits.

Advocates and deliveristas, however, criticized the new speed limit because it would bring more enforcement to the industry, mainly made up of immigrant delivery workers who are already fearful under the Trump administration’s crackdown. They also cast blame on the app companies, saying workers are pressured to make deliveries as quickly as possible.

“[Intro] 1332 is about ensuring deliveristas, 80,000 delivery workers in the city, have just cause protections, making sure that the apps…do not fire and punish deliveristas because they want to drive safe, because they want to prioritize their safety, and because they choose to stay at home in case of an ICE raid,” said Ligia Guallpa, executive director of Workers Justice Project—the non-profit organization that backs Los Deliveristas Unidos—during the rally.

Gabriel Montero, the director of development and communications at the Workers’ Justice Project, said that app companies have deactivated hundreds of workers’ accounts in a month, leaving them on edge and afraid of losing their jobs. 

Councilmember Christopher Marte, who represents the Chinatown area where the recent immigration raid took place, called out fellow council members who have yet to support the bills. 

“In the City Council right now are hypocrites,” Marte said. “They’re really quick to provide a quote, but they still haven’t signed on to these bills that’s been out there for months. When a delivery worker gets hit, gets injured, sometimes, unfortunately, dies, we’re quick to write a statement. We’re quick to have a rally. Well, we’re not quick to have a hearing and a vote that’s actually going to protect our workers.”

Julia Agos, a spokesperson for the City Council, said in a statement that “the additional street vending bills continue to go through the legislative process that is deliberative and allows for thorough public input.”

Food delivery workers, pictured here at a 2022 press conference with City Councilmembers. (John McCarten/NYC Council Media Unit)

‘No attorneys taking new cases’

Both groups are especially at risk of being targeted by ICE during raids since they work on the street. But when these workers are arrested, along with other immigrants in the city, it’s hard to find—or afford—a lawyer who can represent them and fight their case while they’re in detention.

This year, New York City allocated more funds for immigration legal services in its most recent budget passed in June, from $65 million to $120 million in response to the Trump administration’s crackdown.

However, several months after the start of the new fiscal year in July, immigration advocates reported that despite the infusion of funds, it remains very difficult to find full representation from a lawyer.

Some legal providers, like The Bronx Defenders and Brooklyn Defender Services, said that funding shouldn’t be determined in one-year increments, emphasizing the need for sustained support as many immigration cases take years to resolve.

“Despite these investments, the need continues to grow and evolve at the Bronx Defenders, we regularly receive calls from people seeking representation for ICE check-ins, naturalization and other applications for status, non-detained cases, post-conviction, relief or federal representation,” said Rosa Cohen-Cruz, director of immigration policy at the Bronx Defenders, testified at a City Council Immigration Committee hearing earlier this week.

Officials from the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs explained that some of the gaps in legal representation also come into account when a detainee is transferred outside the state—a common practice pursued by the Trump administration.

Grassroots organizations that serve immigrant New Yorkers say they’re also overwhelmed by requests for food and guidance. But these organizations do not have the resources to offer legal representation to all of those who seek it. 

“Right now, New York City is failing our immigrant communities when it comes to access to legal services. There are no attorneys taking new cases. The system is completely overwhelmed,” said Adama Bah. CEO and founder of Afrikana.

“Black migrants are being left behind in a system that was never built for them,” Bah added. “They’re being criminalized for seeking safety, and until the city invests in real, accessible, and culturally competent legal services for our communities, this crisis will continue.”

*This story was updated after publication to include comment from DoorDash. To reach the reporter behind this story, contact Daniel@citylimits.org. To reach the editor, contact Jeanmarie@citylimits.org

Want to republish this story? Find City Limits’ reprint policy here.

The post NYC Delivery Workers & Street Vendors Seek Stronger Protections After ICE’s Canal Street Raid appeared first on City Limits.

By HAVEN DALEY and JANIE HAR, Associated Press

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Police in California are investigating the theft of more than 1,000 items from a museum’s collection including metalwork jewelry, Native American baskets and everyday items like athletic trophies that tell the story of the Golden State.

The Oakland Museum of California is photographed, Thursday, Oct. 30, 2025, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

The burglary occurred in the early morning hours of Oct. 15 at an off-site storage facility of the Oakland Museum of California, Oakland Police said in a news release Wednesday.

Lori Fogarty, the museum’s director, said Thursday the investigation was going public because the artifacts might show up at flea markets, antique stores or pawn shops.

“They’re not just a loss to the museum,” she said. “They’re a loss to the public, to our community and we’re hoping our community can help us bring them home.”

Fogarty said it appeared to be a crime of opportunity, and not a targeted art theft.

“We think the thieves found a way to enter the building, and they grabbed what they could easily find and snatch and get out of the building with,” she said.

Stolen items include neckpieces by the late artist and metalsmith Florence Resnikoff, a pair of scrimshaw walrus tusks and Native American baskets. But she said much of it was historical memorabilia from the 20th century such as campaign pins and athletic awards.

The mission of the Oakland Museum of California is to document the art, history and natural environment of California, and its collection includes works by California artists from the late 18th century to the present, a well as artifacts, photographs, natural specimens and sound recordings. The museum has mounted shows dedicated to the Black Power movement and student activism.

John Romero, a retired Los Angeles Police Department captain who led the department’s commercial crimes unit, told the Los Angeles Times that the items may already have been sold since the burglary occurred two weeks ago. He expects detectives are looking at resale platforms such as Craigslist and Ebay, and networks that specialize in historic or collectible antiques.

“These people are interested in fast cash, not the full appraisal value,” he told the Times. “They need to get rid of it quickly.”

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In January 2013, an Oakland man broke into the museum itself and got away with a California Gold Rush-era jewelry box. Fogarty said the the item was traced to a pawn shop with help from the public, and she hopes the community can help again.

The Oakland Police Department declined to provide further details, but said in its news release that police are working with a unit of the Federal Bureau of Investigation that specializes in art crime, including theft, forgery or antiquities and cultural property trafficking.

The theft occurred four days before thieves made off with priceless Napoleonic jewels from the world’s most-visited museum, the Louvre, in broad daylight. Authorities have made arrests but the jewels have not been recovered.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Oakland police at (510) 238-3951 or submit a tip to the Art Crime Team online or by calling (800) 225-5324.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says drug makers have recalled more than a half-million bottles of the blood pressure medication prazosin hydrochloride over concerns it may include a cancer-causing chemical.

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New Jersey-based Teva Pharmaceuticals USA and drugs distributor Amerisource Health Services issued voluntary nationwide recalls earlier this month of more than 580,000 bottles of various strengths of prazosine capsules, according to the FDA.

Doctors prescribe prazosin, which relaxes blood vessels, to help lower blood pressure. It also is sometimes prescribed for nightmares and other sleep disturbances caused by post-traumatic stress disorder.

The FDA said in enforcement orders posted online that it has given the affected lots of the drug a Class II risk classification because some of the recalled medication may have nitrosamine impurities that are considered potentially cancer causing.

According to the FDA, N-nitrosamine impurities are a class of potentially cancer-causing chemicals that can form during manufacture or storage of a drug.

By CLAUDIA LAUER, Associated Press

A U.S. Senate investigation has uncovered dozens of credible reports of medical neglect and poor conditions in immigration detention centers nationwide — with detainees denied insulin, left without medical attention for days and forced to compete for clean water — raising scrutiny about how the government oversees its vast detention system.

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The report released by Sen. Jon Ossoff, a Democrat from Georgia, is the second in a series of inquiries examining alleged human rights abuses in the immigration detention system. It builds on an August review that detailed mistreatment of children and pregnant women and draws from more than 500 reports of abuse and neglect collected between January and August.

The latest findings document more than 80 credible cases of medical neglect and widespread complaints of inadequate food and water. Senate investigators say that points to systemic failures in federal detention oversight.

The report cites accounts from detainees, attorneys, advocates, news reports and at least one Department of Homeland Security employee, describing delays in medical care that, in some cases, proved life-threatening. One detainee reportedly suffered a heart attack after complaining of chest pain for days without treatment. Others said inhalers and asthma medication were withheld, or that detainees waited weeks for prescriptions to be filled.

A Homeland Security staff member assigned to one detention site told investigators that “ambulances have to come almost every day,” according to the report.

Ossoff said the findings reflect a deeper failure of oversight within federal immigration detention.

“Americans overwhelmingly demand and deserve secure borders. Americans also overwhelmingly oppose the abuse and neglect of detainees,” Ossoff told The Associated Press. “Every human being is entitled to dignity and humane treatment. That is why I have for years investigated and exposed abuses in prisons, jails, and detention centers, and that is why this work will continue.”

The medical reports also detailed how a diabetic detainee went without glucose monitoring or insulin for two days and became delirious before medical attention was given and that it took months for another detainee to receive medication to treat gastrointestinal issues.

Expired milk, foul water, scant food are reported

The Senate investigation also identified persistent complaints about food and water, including evidence drawn from court filings, depositions and interviews. Detainees described meals too small for adults, milk that was sometimes expired, and water that smelled foul or appeared to make children sick. At one Texas facility, a teenager said adults were forced to compete with children for bottles of clean water when staff left out only a few at a time.

The Associated Press asked U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for comment on the report’s findings multiple times Wednesday and Thursday, but the agency did not provide a response. The Homeland Security Department previously criticized Ossoff’s first report in August, saying the allegations of detainees being abused were false and accusing him of trying to “score political points.”

Attorneys for some of those detained at facilities across the country said they’ve seen some of the issues with medical care and food firsthand.

Stephanie Alvarez-Jones, a Southeast regional attorney for the National Immigration Project, said one of the organization’s clients was denied a prescribed medical device while being detained at Angola’s Camp J facility in Louisiana in the last two months. The man, in his 60s, experienced stroke-like symptoms, including partial paralysis, and was eventually taken to the hospital, where he was transferred to an intensive care unit for several days.

Doctors there prescribed him a walker to help him move during his recovery, but Alvarez-Jones said the detention staff would not let him have it when he first returned and placed him in a segregation cell.

“He still could not walk by himself,” she said. “He still had paralysis on his left side.” She added: “He was not able to get up and get his food, to shower by himself or to use the bathroom without assistance. So he had to lay in soiled bedsheets because he wasn’t able to get up.”

Alvarez-Jones said the guards had insinuated to the man that they believed he was faking his illness. He was eventually given the choice of staying in the segregation cell and being allowed a walker, or returning to the general detainee population. She said he’s been relying on the help of others in the general population to eat and use the bathroom as he recovers.

The Baltimore field office is examined

Amelia Dagen, a senior attorney with the Amica Center for Immigrant Rights, is working on a lawsuit against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Removal Operations Baltimore Field Office as well as officials in charge of national immigration enforcement efforts.

Dagen said several of the organization’s clients have had to fight for access to medication at the Baltimore holding facility. Through the lawsuit, she said the government agency had to admit in the court record that it does not have a food vendor to provide three meals a day or any onsite medical staff at the facility that was initially only supposed to hold detainees for about 12 hours.

But since January and the various immigration enforcement actions, it’s much more likely that detainees are held for as much as a week in the Baltimore Hold Room.

“What we started hearing very quickly, maybe in February, was that the food they were being fed three times a day was incredibly inadequate,” Dagen said. “We would hear sometimes it would be a protein bar or sometimes just bread and water. There is very little nutritional value and very little variety. I mean, sometimes it was a military ration component, but just the rice and beans, not a full meal.”

Dagen said the detainees also have to ask for bottles of water and they aren’t always given. The ICE office has taken the stance that the sinks attached to the cell toilets are a continuous supply of water. But Dagen said the detainees complained the sink water has a bad taste.

“This is 100% a problem of their own making,” she said of the authorities. “These hold rooms were not used in this way prior to 2025. They are setting themselves these quotas, removing discretion to release people and trying to arrest numbers of people that are just impractical … fully knowing they don’t have the ability to hold these people.”