On the front door of St. Paul & St. Andrew United Methodist Church is a sign that was not there a week ago.
“[Immigration and Customs Enforcement] and Homeland Security is not permitted,” the sign reads.
What You Need To Know
- An Upper West Side church has a sign saying Immigration and Customs Enforcement is not welcomed inside
- The Trump administration issued a memo that removes sensitive locations, including houses of worship and schools, from being limited in ICE agents' immigration enforcement
- City Hall confirmed New York City public schools is re-evaluating its policy if ICE agents show up, due to the federal rule change
Even with a federal policy change making it easier for ICE agents to go into churches, leaders at the methodist church tell NY1 they will be told they cannot come in.
On Tuesday night, the Trump administration reversed an ICE policy from 2011 that restricted agents from enforcement actions at selective sites and events deemed sensitive. That included houses of worship, schools, funerals, weddings and the site of public demonstration.
The memorandum, created during the Obama administration, gave ICE exceptions when enforcement could occur, such as if there were a threat to the public, and would have needed specific approval.
“The Trump administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement, and instead trusts them to use common sense,” said part of a statement released by a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson.
However, there are still protections in place for these locations, said Amy Belsher, the director of immigrants’ rights litigation at the New York Civil Liberties Union.
“Some spaces would be opened to the public, but churches can designate spaces that are private,” she said.
The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution protects, in part, someone from an unreasonable search due to privacy. Belsher said that is a way for churches to prevent ICE from entering.
And that is precisely will happen if ICE shows up to St. Paul & St. Andrew United Methodist Church, according to Rev. Lea Matthews.
“If proper protocols are followed by ICE agents and Homeland Security, then they cannot breach our doors unless they have a judicial warrant that’s signed by a judge,” Matthews said.
She said they plan to argue the entire church is a private location and cannot be entered without a judicial warrant.
“We are training our staff. We are training our volunteers and our program partners for that reality for that express purpose,” she said.
Matthews has been leading the church’s effort for years to assist migrants throughout the city. They host several events a week that bring hundreds of recent arrivals to New York City to the Upper West Side church.
“They have grown over the years from our guests to our community members to being our friends and now they are more than our neighbors, they are our family,” she said.
Meanwhile, training was also underway at New York City public schools on how to handle a situation where ICE shows up. NY1 attended one of those meetings, which occurred before President Donald Trump’s inauguration, meaning the sensitive locations’ rule change had not yet happened.
Right now, the protocol calls for schools to ask ICE for documents about what they intend to do. That would be passed to the New York City public schools’ legal counsel, which would decide whether ICE could enter.
However, a spokesperson at City Hall confirmed to NY1 that the protocol, while still in place, is now under further review.
An immigration advocacy source told NY1 that a 2017 law could protect schools despite the federal policy change, making it easier for ICE agents to conduct enforcement where they need to.
The law says, in part, that “no city resources, including...the use of city property, shall be utilized for immigration enforcement.”
On Tuesday, the acting U.S. Deputy Attorney General released a memo that implored local officials to listen to federal immigration directives, despite local laws, citing the Supremacy Clause.
“Federal law prohibits state and local actors from resisting, obstructing, and otherwise failing to comply with lawful immigration-related commands,” it reads, in part.
The letter states that the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and Department of Justice could bring “potential prosecution” for officials who do not listen.
However, on Thursday, New York Attorney General Letitia James said that is unconstitutional, and that there is Supreme Court precedent.
“The President has made troubling threats to weaponize the U.S. Department of Justice’s prosecutorial authority and resources to attack public servants acting in compliance with their state laws, interfering with their ability to build trust with the communities they serve and protect,” she said in a statement, in part. “Right now, these vague threats are just that: empty words on paper. But rest assured, our states will not hesitate to respond if these words become illegal actions."