Methodists to ICE in Charlotte: Our churches are not your staging ground
A local Methodist conference criticized Immigration and Customs Enforcement for its presence at an east Charlotte church this week.
Armed agents “staged an operation” at Central United Methodist Church when preschoolers were being picked up, according to a statement from the Western North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church.
“While no one was detained and the agents eventually departed without incident, their presence on sacred ground disrupted the peace and instilled fear among staff, children, families, and congregants,” the statement said.
Carolina Migrant Network, an organization that provides legal services, notified the public about ICE’s presence there on Tuesday. At a county commission meeting that evening, Commissioner Susan Rodriguez-McDowell called on ICE to “respect sensitive locations,” including the church.
A spokesperson for ICE has not commented on the agency’s presence there. The Charlotte Observer again reached out Friday morning.
“ICE enforcement activity on our church property interferes with our ability to welcome the stranger, serve our neighbors, and carry out the ministries that are central to our faith,” the conference said. “Churches should not be staging grounds for law enforcement. They are sacred spaces where the hurting find healing, the hungry are fed, and families — regardless of immigration status — come seeking peace.”
Conference is already suing
In February, that Huntersville-based conference joined dozens of Christian and Jewish denominations in suing the federal government.
The conference “faces an imminent risk of an immigration enforcement action at its churches,” according to the lawsuit. “Several of WNCC’s congregations have a heavy percentage of immigrant members and immigrants who benefit from social service ministries — such as ESL classes, soup kitchens, food pantries, clothing pantries, mobile showers, and tutoring programs — that they provide on their church campuses.”
The conference has said it joined the lawsuit not for partisan reasons but because ICE of rescinding a policy that protected churches, and put congregations “at imminent risk of ICE raids that would disrupt worship, community service, and pastoral care.”
This story was originally published May 23, 2025 at 11:13 AM.