With the inauguration of Donald Trump as president just days away, some churches are stopping in-person Spanish language services, fearing potential upcoming raids and deportations for undocumented parishioners.
Instead, Spanish language service will move to streaming-only, at least for the time being.
It’s a necessary step, church leaders say, to protect their flock from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, who may have renewed authority under President Trump to initiate raids on even the most sacred of spaces.
Church Goes Virtual
Incoming border czar Tom Homan recently stated that Chicago will be “ground zero” for mass deportations of undocumented immigrants. Many Chicago-area churches are taking that promise seriously.
One such church is Lincoln United Methodist. The church, which until recently held services in both English and Spanish, just announced that they’ll be moving all Spanish services online for the time being, fearful that ICE agents may raid the church’s in-person services in search of undocumented immigrants, or stake out and track parishioners for later deportation.
“Our worship service is going to be virtual now because we are not going to be set up so that they can come into our church and separate the children from their families,” explains Lincoln United Methodist Pastor Emma Lozano.
They’re not the only ones taking precautions. Many other churches across the country - particularly in ‘sanctuary cities’ - have announced that they’re moving Spanish services online, or even ceasing them entirely for the near future.
It’s a necessary move, they say, because longstanding norms surrounding immigration raids and houses of worship are likely to change very soon.
ICE Raids: Coming to a Church Near You?
ICE agents are generally not currently allowed to raid churches. A long-standing ICE policy prevents agents from conducting raids at ‘sensitive locations,’ including schools, weddings, hospitals, funerals, and houses of worship. Only under the most extenuating circumstances - including a terror threat or to capture a violent felon - are raids at such locations permitted.
But that is likely to change in the coming weeks. As reported by NBC News, President-elect Trump likely intends to revoke the policy shortly after taking office, with some sources suggesting the change could come as soon as his first day in office. That would give agents unfettered access to carry out what President-elect Trump has called the “largest deportation operation in American history.”
Should the ICE policy preventing raids at sensitive locations be rescinded, raids will begin taking place at these locations almost immediately, experts say. “You could see a raid at a church, you could see a raid at a school,” explains Fred Tsao of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. “It’s going to be disruptive, it’s going to look really bad and it’s going to scare a lot of people, which seems to be the point.”
However, some agents say that the sensitive location change will help them better carry out their job. It will make things “less administratively burdensome” to capture migrants who “abused” the sanctuary policy, explained one former Department of Homeland Security official.
While there’s been no official announcement the change is coming, many churches who preach to undocumented immigrants are moving forward as if it's written in stone.
“We must take their threats seriously,” says Pastor Lozano, “and prepare for the worst.”
What do you make of the notion that President-elect Trump may remove protections blocking raids at houses of worship? And is raiding a church service to capture nonviolent migrants appropriate or warranted?
When it comes to finding and deporting undocumented immigrants, how far is too far?
2 comments
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James Richard Norby
The inside of a church is called a sanctuary for a reason.
I will reserve my opinions to what the President actually does rather than what he might do.