A woke pastor in California wrote an op-ed condemning ICE after they made an arrest in her church parking lot, saying that the agency had tried to “intimidate” members of her congregation and decrying the Trump Administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.
For background, on July 15, 2025, Rev. Tanya Lopez of Downey Memorial Christian Church in Downey, California, wrote an op-ed for USA Today recounting how Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents “tried to intimidate” her congregation by making an arrest outside of the church building, which the pastor said “shattered” the “sanctity” of the place of worship.
Writing in USA Today, Rev. Lopez said, “Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents entered the parking lot of Downey Memorial Christian Church to take a man who was walking through our property.” She added, “The agents were armed, masked, and aggressive.” Continuing, the pastor said that the ICE agents “They tried to intimidate clergy and staff − people whose only armor is their faith and moral convictions.”
Moreover, the pastor said that when ICE agents entered her church property, “our sacred space became a site of state-sanctioned fear and violence.” She went on to reference the recent excusal of parishioners from Catholic Mass by Archbishop Alberto Rojas, saying, “Fear of ICE raids has become so pervasive that even worship cannot feel safe.”
Next, the Rev. Lopez argued that the Trump Administration “has traded compassion for cruelty and mercy for militarization,” saying, “With the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which increases funding for ICE and expands its power to conduct raids, the message is clear: no space is sacred.”
Importantly, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the highly progressive denomination that Rev. Lopez belongs to, spoke out “with urgent concern” following te arrest outside of Downey Memorial in a June 12, 2025, statement, saying, ” Yesterday, unidentified men in masks, plain clothes, and arms visited their church property and removed a pedestrian without explanation or documentation.”
The statement went on to explain that when the ICE agents were “invited to leave the church property,” they responded by “securing a weapon that was pointed at the pastor.” The statement continued, “We are committed to sharing the limitless love of God from our doorsteps to the ends of the earth, even when fear and intimidation visits (sic) our doorsteps, and confusion challenges our ministries.”
The incident with ICE at Downey Memorial occurred several months after the Department of Homeland Security announced in a January 21, 2025, press release that it was ending guidelines that “thwart law enforcement in or near so-called ‘sensitive’ areas,” which include churches. The release continued, “Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest.”