An Upper West Side church has made headlines for its efforts to protect migrants in the wake of the Trump administration’s empowerment of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
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St. Paul & St. Andrew United Methodist Church at 263 West 86th Street (on the corner of West End Avenue) has posted a sign on its front doors stating that “ICE and Homeland Security cannot enter without a warrant signed by a judge.” NY1 first reported the news.
“We want to be clear with ICE and everybody,” Rev. Dr. K Karpen, who has been with the church since 1984, told ILTUWS. “It’s a message to our migrant neighbors that this is a safe space.”
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“We didn’t know if anyone would show up given all the fear in the migrant community,” Karpen added. “We want to protect people from random round-ups.”
St. Paul & St. Andrew bills itself as “your progressive United Methodist Church in NYC.” Part of its mission statement says the church is dedicated to “inclusivity, social justice, and spiritual growth.”
Karken added that many migrants have become members of the church’s 500-person congregation and that the sign on the church’s entryway isn’t meant to be annoying. He doesn’t expect it to create issues as long as ICE or Homeland Security agents are following protocol.
“We’re a peaceful people,” Karpen said. “But we’re not easily bullied.”
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I LOVE that they are taking a stand against this authoritarian administration. Amen to that!
Yes, exactly. No one is above the law.
Church attendance has greatly reduced over the years. These migrants represent a new potential customer base. That said. we should start taxing churches.
Authoritarian? You’ve heard, perhaps, that part of the fable about Nov 5 last year when the American people gave this Administration a mandate, right?
Plus, what does the church have to worry about? They only welcome law-abiding people, right? There are no criminals there, as I’m sure the dear Revered ran a full background search on those he’s harboring.
And weren’t they all about “inclusivity”? You telling me that a DHS employee now can’t simply enter the church as a parishioner?
You lost me (and everyone else) at “mandate”
Try a thesaurus first. Though I suspect your problems are different.
People as dense as you having limitless confidence is how we got in this mess in the first place.
Mandate? Malarkey!
From Merriam-Webster: “Elections are often interpreted as mandates from the public for certain kinds of action. But since a politician is not just a symbol of certain policies but also an individual who might happen to have an awfully nice smile [or spectacularly gorgeous hair! —jms], it can be risky to interpret most elections as mandating anything at all.”
By “mandate” in this context you mean the authority granted a president by virtue of having secured a majority of Electoral College votes and having been sworn in (with or without having deigned to touch a Bible)? If so, I’m not very impressed:
• More voters voted against DJT in the 2024 election (77,588,254) than voted for him (77,303,573).
• Donnie received less than 50% of the popular vote; the majority of voters voted rejected him.
• His lead in the popular vote was the slimmest since Bush-Gore.
As for policy support — from Fox News: “The latest Fox News Poll, released [Jan. 15], finds that by a 13-point margin, more voters view Trump’s victory as a referendum on President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’ policies and performance (54%) than a validation of Trump’s (41%). That includes 71% of Democrats, 64% of independents and 34% of Republicans saying it was more of a rejection[…] While Trump describes his 2024 win as a mandate, a slim 51% majority disagrees. Some 4 in 10 (42%) call it a mandate, including 69% of Trump supporters[…]” According to the Fox survey, the issue in DJT’s agenda enjoying the largest margin of support (62%) is … ending Daylight Saving Time, to which I can only add (1) I agree and (2) whoop-de-do. On many of the issues surveyed, Trump’s Project 2025 positions were rejected, and expectations for his regime were pretty dismal. Mandate, schmandate.
Finally, like every other GOP POTUS for the past 60 years, our Man of Convictions won without the blessings of legitimacy but rather through overwhelming chicanery. Widespread vote suppression, along with Russian assistance, likely accounts for Felonious the First’s coronation at least as much as voter ignorance. The Chiffon Charlatan had to cheat, as usual, to eek out his tiny accomplishment.
May the FSM forgive the church for trying to protect some of its parishioners from others bearing guns!
“Americans sour on some of Trump’s early moves, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds” (https://www.reuters.com/world/us/americans-sour-some-trumps-early-moves-reutersipsos-poll-finds-2025-01-28/).
Excerpt: “Overall, the poll showed 45% of Americans approve of Trump’s performance as president, down slightly from 47% in a Jan. 20-21 poll. The share who disapproved was slightly larger at 46%, an increase from 39% in the prior poll.”
Uh-oh, he’s drooping!
Here’s the all-important infographic: https://www.reuters.com/graphics/USA-TRUMP/EO-APPROVAL-20250128/zgpoagbdmpd/chart.png
The only “mandate” *cough* the Great Impounder enjoys is “Mandate for Leadership: Policy Management for a Conservative Administration” — i.e., Project 2025.
All my donations to the church have now been stopped INDEFINITELY.
Go I.C.E!
Didn’t realize it’s a Christian church, eh? Maybe there’s a Scientology center nearby you can hook up with.
I love it when people make loud, broad proclimations that nobody cares about. I’m sure they won’t miss anything you have to offer, Tim.
Supporters of Trump are so full of hate, it’s amazing to witness. Those that claim to be “Christian” are that special category of Christian that includes the lowest forms of humanity: pedophiles, sadists, traitors, those that would gladly turn in their neighbor for the pleasure of simply being evil. Their God is also witnessing their evil.
Uws has enough rapist, murderers, and pedophiles
Let’s give this guy a chance.
Follow the money at the church level by the way
Deep.
Not all migrants are criminals not all criminals are migrants but everyone should want criminal migrants apprehended and deported.