Fresno Bishop Condemns ‘Indiscriminate’ ICE Raids as Congregations Report Detentions
Roman Catholic Bishop Joseph V. Brennan of the Diocese of Fresno issued a pastoral letter this month stating that ICE enforcement operations in California’s Central Valley are instilling “unrest, anxiety and even fear” and that many of his priests are reporting congregations “have been taken away abruptly and with little or no information coming from federal agents.”
The bishop’s letter, issued in early October, pushed back against what he described as the “indiscriminate nature” of raids and stated that the Catholic Church “will not be silent” and “will accompany our vulnerable neighbors in concrete, sustained ways.”
Brennan leads the Diocese of Fresno, which covers a large portion of California’s southern Central Valley and claims 1.2 million members. The Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement have not announced any specific operation targeting California or the Central Valley, though local media have reported increased enforcement in recent weeks.
A DHS spokesperson did not confirm any specific operation but defended ongoing enforcement: “Every day, DHS enforces the laws of the nation across the country including in California.” The spokesperson provided a list of five people labeled as “public safety threats” arrested in California, which included people convicted of vehicular manslature, aggravated assault with a gun, burglary, homicide, and selling drugs.
A Fresno City Council member said deportations have reduced school attendance and cut back on worker participation, according to the Los Angeles Times. Others have pointed out that detentions, even those of U.S. citizens, have stoked fear among the larger Hispanic populace. Human rights advocates have said the raids are meant to discourage voter turnout, while ICE spokespeople have claimed the department merely “enforces the law of the nation across the country, including California.”
Brennan’s letter was based on direction offered by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in November. The bishops voted 216-5 to approve a special message opposing “the indiscriminate mass deportation of people” during the 2025 Fall Plenary Assembly.
“These people are valued and beloved, they are part of the fabric of our community,” Brennan wrote. “It is frightening to them and disturbing to us that these current operations seem to have taken on an indiscriminate nature with little regard for the dignity of the human person.”
The bishop called for “real change and real reform,” saying “our country and our elected officials must do better,” calling for “tangible results that reflect meaningful and just immigration reform.”
“Our parishes will be present to them for healing and comfort,” Brennan said. “Accompaniment might take the shape of walking with families through long and complicated legal proceedings, showing up at immigration court, organizing transportation and childcare, and refusing to let anyone face this situation alone.”
Father William O’Neill, a Jesuit priest and director of immigration ethics at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University, argued that the Church has never advocated for open borders. “The recognition that the state, by its very nature, has a right to control its borders has always been a part of Catholic social teaching,” O’Neill said.
Cecilia Gonzáles-Andrieu, professor of theology and human rights at Loyola Marymount University and the former president of the Academy of Catholic Hispanic Theologians of the United States, said that Catholics in favor of indiscriminate mass deportations are ignoring basic church teachings. “We have a particular time right now in the United States and a particular set of suffering people, and we don’t get to say, well, now we’re just gonna pretend this isn’t happening,” she said.
“I have young students who are fearful of being racially profiled, and I’m personally scared for my 92-year-old father,” Gonzáles-Andrieu said. “Because if you look Latino or Latina, you are now open to being terrorized.”
The Breakdown
- Bishop Joseph V. Brennan of the Diocese of Fresno issued a pastoral letter in early October stating that ICE enforcement operations in California’s Central Valley are instilling “unrest, anxiety and even fear” and that priests are reporting congregations “have been taken away abruptly and with little or no information coming from federal agents.”
- The letter pushed back against what Brennan described as the “indiscriminate nature” of raids and stated the Catholic Church “will not be silent” and “will accompany our vulnerable neighbors in concrete, sustained ways.”
- Brennan’s letter was based on direction from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, which voted 216-5 in November to approve a special message opposing “the indiscriminate mass deportation of people.”
- DHS and ICE have not announced any specific operation targeting California or the Central Valley, though local media have reported increased enforcement in recent weeks.
- A DHS spokesperson did not confirm any specific operation but defended ongoing enforcement, stating “Every day, DHS enforces the laws of the nation across the country including in California.”
- A Fresno City Council member said deportations have reduced school attendance and cut back on worker participation. Human rights advocates have said the raids are meant to discourage voter turnout.
What This Means for You
This story centers on how immigration-enforcement policy is playing out in Fresno and how local institutions are responding. A Fresno City Council member and the leader of the 1.2-million-member Fresno diocese have both stated that enforcement operations are affecting school attendance, worker participation, and congregations in the city and Central Valley. The bishop states that “members of congregations have been taken away abruptly and with little or no information coming from federal agents,” and others have reported that detentions, even those of U.S. citizens, have stoked fear among the larger Hispanic populace. DHS describes its enforcement as targeting serious criminals it labels “public safety threats,” while the bishop and others describe the enforcement as having an “indiscriminate nature.”
What to Watch
The sources do not provide data on how many people have been detained in Fresno or the Central Valley in recent weeks, or whether those detained were convicted of crimes as the agency’s “public safety threats” framing suggests. The bishop states that “members of congregations have been taken away abruptly and with little or no information coming from federal agents,” and others have reported that detentions, even of U.S. citizens, have stoked fear. The material does not document which claim is accurate, or whether both are — that would require detention records, warrants, and charging documents. The bishop and others describe the enforcement as “indiscriminate,” while DHS describes it as targeting serious criminals.
