Standing in front of the Detroit headquarters of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on a sunny Monday morning, the Rev. David Buersmeyer asked a security officer if he could accept a letter from Catholics asking ICE Detroit to better treat immigrants.
Judith Brooks, a fellow Catholic who advocates for immigrants, stood by the Detroit priest’s side with a sealed envelope, leaning forward to hand the letter to him. But the officer didn’t respond, slammed the glass door shut with a loud thud and then pushed on it to make sure it was secure.
“Shame!” a protester shouted out. A crowd of hundreds who stood outside the building on Michigan Avenue then started to sing a song by Batya Levine, a Jewish musician: “In hope, in prayer, we find ourselves here, in hope, in prayer, we’re right here.”
The scene on July 14th outside the Detroit ICE building illustrated the growing frustration Catholic leaders and others have expressed with immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump, which they allege has unfairly targeted communities with overzealous actions.
ICE officials did not respond to the Free Press for comment about the letter and march in Detroit.
Since being installed in March as the head of the Archdiocese of Detroit in March, Archbishop Edward Weisenburger has been an outspoken supporter of immigrants, meeting with an immigrant family facing deportation the day after he became archbishop.
And on Monday, Weisenburger was there walking with other protesters in a silent procession from the historic Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Corktown to the ICE headquarters a few blocks away.
The procession was led by a man carrying a cross on a tall pole, followed by a couple of Catholics holding a banner of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a popular image of the mother of Christ whom many Mexican Catholics revere. In addition to Wesinburger, several of Detroit’s auxiliary bishops, priests and nuns marched, along with Catholics from 25 parishes in southeastern Michigan, as well as Protestant and Jewish leaders, among others. It was a diverse crowd of Whites, Latinos, and Blacks, of all ages, united in supporting immigrants. Some of the numerous protest signs read: “You shall not oppress strangers,” “Nadie es ilegal” (Spanish for “No one is illegal”), “Community not cruelty,” and “Immigrants are family to us.”
“We are here today to ask that our nation and its leaders” listen to the plight of immigrants, Sister Rebecca Vonderhaar of Immaculate Heart of Mary told the large crowd at Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church before the march.
“Many of our brothers and sisters and their families have proven their innate goodness,” Vonderhaar said. “They have been so unjustly treated by raids and mass deportations. Let us know that apathy is never an option, but trust with faith, goodwill and a bit of advocacy will bear fruit. And trusting in your goodness oh, God, we move on.”
“Amen,” the crowd responded.
They then headed south on 6th Street, hooked a right on Michigan Avenue, crossed the Lodge Freeway and turned right to the front of the ICE office. Speaking on a microphone through a loudspeaker, Sister Nina Rodriguez of the Sisters of St. Joseph and another woman then read a list of names of immigrants who have been deported or detained this year. After each name, the crowd said in response: “We hold you in our hearts.”
One of the immigrants she mentioned was Maykol Bogoya Duarte, 18, a Detroit high school student with no criminal record, deported by ICE last month to Colombia after he was arrested by Border Patrol while on a school field trip.
“These are my people,” Rodriguez told the Free Press after the rally. “I’m Mexican American. My parents were immigrants. And my heart breaks to know that families are being separated. That is so unjust. And these people they’re breaking up, they’re not criminals. They’re people who have been here ten years, 25 years, and they have no say, they’re just taken. My heart breaks for these people.”
The event was organized by Strangers No Longer, a group of Catholics in Michigan with Michigan Circles of Support that advocates for immigrants. Buersmeyer, a chaplain with Strangers No Longer, and Brooks, the group’s board president, cosigned the letter addressed to Kevin Raycraft, the field office director of ICE Detroit, whom they had hoped to deliver it to.
The letter started by asking Raycraft if he would meet with them to discuss their concerns, which included: federal agents using facemasks and no identification during enforcement operations; immigration actions without a federal warrant; no communication with local police about impending operations; and arresting people who have not committed a felony.
“To ensure the safety of both officers and others on the scene, a badge or other identification is critical,” the letter said. “The facemasks are ramping up fear in all communities, immigrant and non-immigrant.” The letter added that “the pattern of separating families is having a devastating impact on those left behind.”
The letter added: “Today’s Solemn Procession was led by Catholic clergy and women religious, and leaders from our 25 parishes across Metro Detroit – people of deep faith who firmly believe in human dignity for all and the gospel call to ‘Welcome the Stranger.’ And we are joined today by people of many faith traditions across the region.”
The rally also included Lutheran leaders such as Pastor Jack Eggleston of Southgate and Methodist leaders, such as the Rev. Paul Perez, the pastor of Central United Methodist Church in Detroit. Some Jewish leaders also took part.
“I’m here representing … the Jews who are against the immigration atrocities we’re seeing,” said Elliot Ratzman, with Fellowship of Reconciliation, an interfaith peace group in Ann Arbor. “It reminds us of our own challenges of being kicked out of countries. The Jewish community is almost universally opposed to this immigration authoritarianism.”
Organizers of the march announced they will start a weekly prayer vigil outside the Detroit immigration courthouse in the federal McNamara building on Michigan Avenue every Wednesday morning from 7:30 a.m. to 8 a.m., starting on Aug. 6, to show support for immigrants showing up for court. In recent months, ICE has increasingly arrested immigrants appearing in court.
Buersmeyer tried two times on Monday to deliver the letter to the guard monitoring the entrance. He said the guard told him to “call them” later. Buersmeyer said that since they were unable to deliver the letter, they were going to contact U.S. House Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Detroit, whose district includes the church and ICE office, and ask him to deliver it.
Thanedar told the Free Press after the rally: “It is important that ICE treats migrants with compassion, respecting their human rights. There should be a healthy dialogue between the federal agencies and the community at large. ICE should be no exception. I intend to reach ICE and facilitate a dialogue, as transparency is essential to build public trust.”
Buersmeyer said he was disappointed that ICE did not accept their letter “because we want to create dialogue. We’re not trying to embarrass them. … We’re not against them. It’s not an anti-government protest. We want ICE to do their job, but in a way that doesn’t create fear. There are ways to do it that doesn’t create chaos and disruptions in people’s lives.”
Contact Niraj Warikoo: nwarikoo@freepress.com, X @nwarikoo or Facebook @nwarikoo
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Catholics led march to Detroit ICE office in protest for immigrants
Reporting by Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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