World Immigration News

US judge halts Trump administration immigration raids at certain religious sites

Release Date: 2025-02-25
Media: MIDDLE EAST MONITOR
Summary: A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to stop enforcing immigration policies at places of worship belonging to Quakers, Cooperative Baptists, and Sikhs. This ruling follows a lawsuit filed by these religious groups challenging Trump’s reversal of a Biden-era policy that had restricted immigration enforcement in sacred spaces.

U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang, an Obama appointee, ruled that the policy discouraged worship attendance, affecting both undocumented and legal immigrants. He found that it likely violated the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The judge ordered the reinstatement of the 2021 memo by former Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, which prohibited immigration enforcement at certain “special protection” locations like schools, medical facilities, and places of worship.

However, arrests at or near places of worship are still allowed if a warrant is issued. Democracy Forward praised the ruling, emphasizing the importance of religious freedom and the right to worship without fear of government raids.
Tags: USA

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