DURHAM, N.C. — The Nov. 23 arrest of an undocumented lay minister from Mexico has the nation’s sanctuary churches doubling down on security protocols to protect those living within their facilities.
Samuel Oliver-Bruno left CityWell Church in Durham, North Carolina, where he had taken sanctuary for 11 months, for fingerprinting at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). When he arrived at the USCIS office, he was taken into custody by agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Oliver-Bruno is expected to be deported back to Mexico.
Thirty-six U.S. churches are providing sanctuary for some 52 undocumented people, according to Church World Service, a multidenominational Christian ministry that works on immigration and other social justice issues.
Since 2014 no undocumented immigrant taking sanctuary in a church has been arrested on its premises. However, when those undocumented people have stepped out of church sanctuary, they have promptly been jailed and deported.
Church leaders expressed alarm because Oliver-Bruno’s arrest appeared to be a coordinated effort between ICE and USCIS. Noel Andersen, national grassroots coordinator for Church World Service, said he doesn’t remember another such incident.
“USCIS is supposed to assist immigrants in becoming citizens, not set them up for deportation,” Andersen said. (RNS)
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