State Sen. Gustavo Rivera (S.D. 33) joined members of Northwest Bronx Indivisible, Beacon and Bend the Arc on Saturday, July 18, outside Citizens’ Bank at 569 West 235th Street in the Riverdale section of The Bronx to celebrate Citizens Bank’s decision to cease financing entities running detention centers for the U.S. Department of Immigration, Customs & Enforcement (ICE).

 

Northwest Bronx Indivisible is a grassroots group committed to justice, democracy, and the rule of law, one of many thousands and growing Indivisible chapters across the nation, according to its social media page. 

Hands Off NYC Press Conference, Williamsbridge Oval, Norwood, The Bronx, May 22, 2026 V1 Video by Síle Moloney

Bend the Arc: Jewish Action is uniting a movement of progressive Jews and allies fighting for justice, according to its social media page, and Beacon is described as a “guiding light” community organization, according to its social media page.

 

On Sunday, July, 19, Rivera, who represents some or all of the Bronx neighborhoods of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham Manor, Belmont, University Heights, Morris Heights, Little Yemen, Allerton, Pelham Parkway, Morris Park, Spuyten Duyvil, Fieldston, Riverdale, and North Riverdale, released a statement, saying, “Yesterday morning, I was proud to stand with neighbors in the De-ICE Citizens Bank coalition to protest Citizens Bank for financing the companies building and operating detention centers.”

Hands Off NYC Press Conference, Williamsbridge Oval, Norwood, The Bronx, May 22, 2026 V2 Video by Síle Moloney

“I stand in solidarity with those of us resisting ICE’s terrorizing and kidnapping of our community members which includes standing up to the for-profit companies complicit in their violence,” he added.

 

The senator went on to reference two Americans killed by ICE agents last week, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston, Texas and Johan Duran Guerrero in Maine respectively. “We grieve with their loved ones for their senseless loss,” he said.

Hands Off NYC Press Conference, Williamsbridge Oval, Norwood, The Bronx, May 22, 2026 V3 Video by Síle Moloney

He continued, “All of us are endangered by ICE’s lawless actions and our resistance and protest is critical. That’s why just last Friday, Citizens Bank announced they would exit agreements with CoreCivic and GEO Group.”

 

Rivera added, “There is still more work to be done to abolish ICE and hold their enablers accountable, so I am encouraged and grateful that there are leaders in my own neighborhood leading the charge.”

Hands Off NYC Press Conference, Williamsbridge Oval, Norwood, The Bronx, May 22, 2026 V4 Video by Síle Moloney

Speaking at the gathering outside the bank on July 18, Rivera had said, “It’s real easy to get lost in the constant battle of every single day, every single thing that the [Trump] administration has been doing, every single thing that private companies are doing to suck up to the [Trump] administration, all these things.”

 

He continued, “And then, when you get moments like this, you actually have to bask in them a little bit and realize that [..] there are some things that are turning. When you have a company that doesn’t have to pay attention to just a few people in front of their bank, like y’all did for so long, or all the other folks that were pressured, they don’t have to pay attention but they do at times. And when they do, not only do they do that, but they change the way that they actually function, which is what you were asking for to begin with.”

Hands Off NYC Press Conference, Williamsbridge Oval, Norwood, The Bronx, May 22, 2026 V5 Video by Síle Moloney

He added, “We have to take those moments and say these are the things that give us a little bit of hope, a little bit of energy, and so it’s, like, take that and say it was, indeed, the fact that you were here, because it’s cold, and I’m freezing my buns off, and you are still here because you wanted to make sure that they [Citizens’ Bank] knew that you knew that they were doing something that they should not do. So, pressuring your companies works, pressuring your public officials works, collective energy works; that’s the bottom line, so I thank you for letting me join you.”

 

Norwood News reached out to Citizens’ Bank for comment. We did not receive an immediate response but will share any feedback we receive.

As reported, at least two people in the Norwood and Bedford Park neighborhoods refused medical attention several times this week (one finally agreed) after both were injured and seen bleeding from the head due to suspected fears over U.S. Department of Customs Immigration and Enforcement (ICE) actions, if they accepted medical assistance.

 

Following media reports on Thursday, July 16, that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) could start weighing immigrants’ use of Medicaid, food and housing help in green card decisions in the future, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani later said, “To every New Yorker: this rule is not yet in effect. The earliest it could take effect is Sept. 18, 2026. New York City will use every tool at our disposal to fight this attack on immigrant families and the communities that make our city the greatest on earth.”

 

He added, “For any questions, please call @NYCImmigrants Legal Support Hotline at 1-800-354-0365.”

Hands Off NYC Press Conference, Williamsbridge Oval, Norwood, The Bronx, May 22, 2026 V6 Video by Síle Moloney

The same day, CBS News reported that plainclothes ICE officers approached and attempted to detain 57-year-old Phu Nguyen at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas on Monday, July 13. “After bystanders approached the scuffle, the agents left the scene without arresting Nguyen, but still handcuffed on one wrist,” the news outlet reported.

 

“ICE posted on X that agents eventually detained Nguyen at Los Angeles International Airport the next day. According to the Department of Homeland Security, Nguyen is an Australian citizen who was born in Vietnam and overstayed a visa that expired in 2015,” CBS added. Video of the incident can be watched here.

Hands Off NYC Press Conference, Williamsbridge Oval, Norwood, The Bronx, May 22, 2026 V7 Video by Síle Moloney

On Sunday, July 19, The New York Times reported that federal agents were allegedly told that the F.B.I. will no longer investigate ICE confrontations with civilians.

 

On May 22, Hands Off NYC, were joined by among others, Ben the Arc, the Unity Democratic Club (based in the Northwest Bronx), Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, for a press conference in the Williamsbridge Oval park in Norwood to let residents fearful of ICE know that help is available, should they need it.

 

As reported, Hands Off NYC is a home for anyone who knows that protecting our neighbors takes all of us,” according to the group’s website. “The Trump Administration and billionaires are attacking our freedoms, families, and communities,” an extract from the website reads. “They want us scared, isolated, and powerless. We refuse to accept this. Hands Off NYC is supported by over 250 grassroots community groups, labor unions, nonprofits, and faith leaders.”

Some videos of the speeches delivered at the Norwood press conference on May 22 are attached.

Hands Off NYC Press Conference, Williamsbridge Oval, Norwood, The Bronx, May 22, 2026 V8 Video by Síle Moloney

Read some of our prior ICE coverage here and here.