LOS ANGELES, CA — As tensions rise across the country over President Donald Trump’s intensified immigration crackdown, a growing coalition of religious leaders is urging Americans to take to the streets—peacefully. Among them is Rev. Edward Anderson, who stood between protesters and law enforcement during a recent rally in Los Angeles, acting as a human buffer in defense of nonviolent resistance.
Anderson, pastor of McCarty Memorial Christian Church in West Adams Terrace, believes that faith compels action in the face of injustice.
“It is imperative that people of faith speak out because silence in the face of injustice is complicity,” he said.
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While opinions within the faith community remain divided, many religious leaders are calling for nonviolent action in response to the administration’s immigration raids. Federal agents, backed by National Guard troops and Marines, have begun detaining undocumented immigrants—including long-time residents with no criminal records—sparking daily protests in Los Angeles. Though most demonstrations have been peaceful, some have turned confrontational.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and other elected officials have called for restraint, a sentiment echoed by religious leaders who see their presence as vital in de-escalating tensions.
“The moral message is clear: we do not accept the world as it is. We respond to cruelty with courage, to hatred with love,” said Rabbi Sharon Brous during an interfaith vigil downtown.
Rev. Jacqui Lewis of Middle Collegiate Church in New York City emphasized that “we’re like Jesus – nonviolent.” Her church has supported immigrant families with food, shelter, and advocacy. She added,
“But nonviolence isn’t silence… It often means confronting people with the truth. Social change has happened because people of faith and spiritual imagination guided the streets peacefully.”
The legacy of nonviolent protest in America is long and proven, from Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Civil Rights marches to today’s demonstrations. Yet experts note that such resistance demands resilience.
“Principled nonviolence comes from this awareness that the divine resides in each and every one of us and every life is precious,” said Michael Nagler of the Metta Center for Nonviolence, citing teachings from the Bhagavad Gita.
“You believe that a solution can always be worked out where all parties have their legitimate needs met.”
Nagler acknowledged that while nonviolence may not deliver instant change, it avoids casualties and brings deeper societal transformation. In today’s climate, that might mean pressuring the administration to adopt more humane immigration policies.
Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, president of the Interfaith Alliance, highlighted the protective power of clergy in protest spaces:
“They can provide a sense of shield, a spiritual force… a reduction of harm and nonviolent presence in a space where it appears that there’s only a spiraling of violence.”
Anderson’s congregation has been working with local organizations and unions to host prayer vigils, educate migrants on their rights, and train fellow clergy in how to respond if ICE agents appear at their places of worship.
“We are not only called to preach justice but to embody it, to be present in the pain of our people, and to lift up the sacred worth of every human life,” Anderson said.
Yet support for the crackdown is not absent within the faith community. Prominent evangelical leader Rev. Robert Jeffress of Dallas stands by Trump’s policies, stating,
“I support 100 percent President Trump’s goal of protecting our country from evildoers, whether from within or without… The president has authority from the Constitution and the Bible to do exactly what he’s doing.”
Regarding protests, Jeffress added, “People have a right to be wrong. But they don’t have the right to be wrong in a violent manner.”
As immigration tensions continue to mount, America’s faith leaders remain deeply engaged—not just as moral voices, but as active participants in shaping the path forward through nonviolent means.
