Clergy Members Denied Entry to ICE Detention Facility on Ash Wednesday
Clergy members were turned away from providing Ash Wednesday services to detainees at Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s temporary holding facility in downtown Los Angeles.
The denial was communicated by ICE agents at the facility to a group of clergy from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Faith leaders had submitted a request on Monday, signed and submitted by U.S. House Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-CA), to provide communion to detainees, many of whom are awaiting transfer to permanent detention facilities.
A group of roughly 50 protestors aligned with the Community Self Defense Coalition, which seeks to protect undocumented immigrants from ICE raids, were also stationed outside the building, though they were not trying to enter the facility with the clergy.