The Trump administration defended the move as empowering law enforcement.
A group of Quaker congregations have sued the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), alleging that it is infringing on their religious freedom by allowing arrests of illegal immigrants at their meetings.
The lawsuit, filed in the District of Maryland on Jan. 27, reads: “Allowing armed government agents wearing [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] emblazoned jackets to park outside religious service and monitor who enters or to interrupt the service and drag a congregant out during the middle of worship is anathema to Quaker religious exercise.
“The very threat of that enforcement deters congregants from attending services, especially members of immigrant communities.”
Among the plaintiffs are the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, New England Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, Baltimore Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, and others.
They are suing the DHS, as well as Secretary Kristi Noem in her official capacity.
Then-Acting Secretary of DHS, Benjamine Huffman, issued a directive on Jan. 20 that rescinded the prior administration’s policy of barring arrests in so-called “sensitive” areas such as churches.
“This action empowers the brave men and women in CBP and ICE to enforce our immigration laws and catch criminal aliens—including murders and rapists—who have illegally come into our country,” Huffman said in a press release on Jan. 21.
“Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest.”
The congregations brought claims under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the First Amendment, and the Administrative Procedures Act (APA).
Besides concerns about religious exercise, the congregations said that DHS failed to engage in a notice-and-comment process under the APA, as well as other purported violations of the statute.
The lawsuit stated that the congregations believed God could speak through anyone during their meetings.
“Deterring immigrants from worshipping in-person with a Quaker meeting would therefore directly interfere with Plaintiff’s religious exercise by lessening their ‘ability to hear God and what God is trying to tell [them],’” the lawsuit read, quoting a declaration from a member of one of the congregations.
They also took issue with the presence of armed officers at meeting houses, stating that: “Quakers have held a religious commitment against violence for hundreds of years.”
Officers’ presence, they said, would “significantly hamper Plaintiffs’ ability to exercise their faith.”
Huffman described the policy as a way to not “tie the hands of our brave law enforcement” but instead to trust “them to use common sense.”
The congregations indicated the department’s reliance on “common sense,” which they described as “subjective,” wasn’t enough to set boundaries on law enforcement’s actions.
They also pointed to the former DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas stating in a 2021 memo that the department could “accomplish our enforcement mission without denying or limiting individuals’ access to needed medical care, children access to their schools, the displaced access to food and shelter, people of faith access to their places of worship, and more.”
The lawsuit is requesting that a federal judge declare the policy unconstitutional and block DHS from implementing it.
It’s one of many targeting the Trump administration, which has vowed to deport illegal immigrants.
A separate lawsuit from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) seeks to halt the Trump administration’s attempt to expand expedited removal of illegal immigrants.
Last week, in another immigration-related lawsuit, a federal judge blocked Trump’s order restricting birthright citizenship.
The Epoch Times has reached out to DHS for comment.