Immigrant activist disrupts private luncheon in Huntington Station hosted by Brentwood lawmaker

An International Women’s Day luncheon turned confrontational Friday when an uninvited community activist entered the restaurant and shouted at State Sen. Monica Martinez (D-Brentwood).

Joshua Chan, the deputy director of Islip Forward, a nonprofit that tracks U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity on Long Island, entered a private, invitation-only luncheon hosted by Suffolk County Leg. Sam Gonzalez (D-Brentwood), according to both elected officials.

Chan gained entry to the lunch, held at Fogo de Chão in Huntington Station Friday, "under false pretenses," and disguised as a Muslim woman by wearing a hijab, a religious head garment, Gonzalez said in a statement.

After he arrived and engaged in "violent behavior toward" Martinez, Chan "had to be physically removed" from the restaurant, Gonzalez said. The legislator’s chief of staff, Luis Montes Brito, removed him, according to a video Islip Forward posted to social media.

"Monica, Sen. Martinez, why don’t you support immigrant women?," Chan shouted in the video as Brito physically pulled him out of the restaurant.

Islip Forward said it "attended" the event and alleged Chan was "assaulted" by Brito and Gonzalez’s aide, Delaya Huilcapi, in its social media post.

"Legislator Gonzalez has repeatedly refused, even publicly, to stand with his own constituents against Islip’s ongoing ICE contract, instead preferring to participate in salsa concerts and becoming a radio show personality," Islip Forward said in its statement. "We showed up to say what too many politicians hope no one will: You can’t ignore your community and expect silence. Islip Forward will keep showing up."

ICE has a contract with Islip in which agents train at the town's shooting range.

Martinez in a statement described Chan’s presence as a "deliberate, premeditated act of harassment and intimidation." She said she has "been a target of Islip Forward before."

"Their campaign of harassment has been ongoing, escalating and organized," Martinez added. "Today it crossed into dangerous territory."

"To my colleagues, community leaders, and law enforcement: I am asking you to take this seriously," the state senator added. "The pattern of behavior exhibited by Islip Forward’s Deputy Director and his associates represents a genuine threat to the safety of elected officials and the integrity of civic life. We cannot wait for something worse to happen before we act."

Suffolk County police officers responded to the incident, which occurred around 12:25 p.m., a department spokesperson told Newsday in an email late Friday. They said no charges were filed in connection with the incident. Chan vacated the scene before police arrived.

"The man never made contact with Sen. Martinez and there were no injuries," the Suffolk police spokesperson said.

Newsday's Belisa Morillo contributed to this story.