Demonstrators Raise Chorus Against ICE, Sheriff’s Agreement

By ERIC SANTOMAURO-STENZEL
COOPERSTOWN

Around 60 demonstrators gathered at the Otsego County offices in Cooperstown to oppose U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the county sheriff’s 287(g) agreement with them on Saturday, February 28. Organized by the new group Singing Resistance Central New York, the crowd sang movement songs and heard speeches for about an hour and a half.

“We gather today to protest Otsego County’s affiliation with an unchecked, unaccountable and unhinged ICE,” chapter founder Khalil Jade Carney of Gilbertsville told demonstrators. “We’ve all seen how ICE has been terrorizing our country and community.”

The Sheriff’s Office 287(g) agreement deputizes certain corrections officers in the county jail as immigration officers for the purpose of facilitating transfer of individuals with immigration warrants to ICE custody at the conclusion of their criminal custody. Several protests by different groups across the county have highlighted opposition to the agreement.

Speakers and singers connected stories of ICE’s aggressive tactics nationally with local impacts.

Referring to the recent Buffalo death of Myanmar immigrant Nurul Amin Shah Alam, Clark Oliver said, “Immigration and Customs Enforcement dropped off a blind man at a closed coffee shop without alerting his family, and he was found dead two days later with no shoes on.”

The former Democratic county board member now running for the District 11 seat said, “This is not about what this administration said it was going to be about,” instead it is about “cruelty, dehumanization, racism, bigotry and all of the disgusting things that this administration holds so dear.”

Janet Tweed, a Democratic candidate for the 102nd Assembly District, told AllOtsego she was there “to speak out against the current tactics being used by ICE. Many courts have ruled that their behavior is unlawful (at least 4,400 illegal detainments, and 96 court orders violated just in January 2026). Even the FBI has advised ICE to change their practices because of copycat criminals. Silence in the face of this behavior feels to me like condoning these actions, if not outright complicity.”

Tweed said she would support either the proposed Local Cops, Local Crimes or New York for All legislation if elected. The former would temporarily bar 287(g) agreements statewide, the latter would bar both formal and informal local law enforcement-ICE collaboration indefinitely.

Songs included an ICE-focused variation on “Which Side Are You On?”, popularized by Pete Seeger, and several call and responses.

“We won’t be silent while our friends are gunned down / Hell no, hell no,” demonstrators sang.

“We sing songs that are simple, taught by ear, and alive with grief, love and resistance, because singing together itself is an act of world building, one that heals us, connects us and turns our fear into power,” Carney explained.

Ousting Otsego County Sheriff Richard Devlin (R)—who signed the 287(g) agreement in the fall and is seeking his sixth four-year term—has been a priority for local Democrats. But as of press time, they still have not announced a candidate.

That has created a potential opening for Michael Stalter, a Republican and recently-retired sergeant in the Sheriff’s Office who has committed to rescinding the 287(g) agreement if elected and has been highly critical of Devlin’s management style. Some Democrats who spoke at the rally encouraged demonstrators to support him.

“What you can do is support [Devlin’s] opponent,” Oliver told demonstrators. “Let’s have 2026 be the final year that Sheriff Devlin is in office.”

Caitlin Ogden, the chair of the county Democratic Party, told demonstrators that anger about ICE and the Trump administration, including the growing conflict with Iran, is valid.

Without it, “We’re not going to come to things like this, and we’re not going to go knock doors for our local candidates, including the one who is going to kick Sheriff Devlin out of office and repeal the [287(g)] agreement,” Ogden said. “And you know what? He may not be a Democrat, but I will say I am appreciative of Mike Stalter for taking this on and for realizing that far and beyond even that agreement, we need to be doing a better job here at Otsego County for our enforcement of laws and for the condition of the people who wind up in our system.”

Ogden clarified in an interview that she was speaking for herself, and if a Democratic candidate came forward she would support them.

“Me, personally, yes, I would encourage people to vote for Mike Stalter if he becomes either the Republican nominee after the primary, or if he runs as an independent,” Ogden said.

Devlin did not respond to a request for comment for this story.

“We’re going to keep on singing in our communities and at protests,” including the March 28 No Kings protest in Oneonta, Carney told AllOtsego.