St. John's Protocols for a Potential Engagement with ICE Officers
St. John's Protocols for a Potential Engagement with ICE Officers
St. John’s in Mankato has a wonderfully active congregation and building. Over the last few years, they have gotten creative about how to share their space with organizations in the community, and have realized wonderful and deep relationships as a result.
They now have partnerships with two organizations - Good Council Learning Center, and a Spanish-speaking Pentecostal church, which uses the sanctuary space on Sundays.
Both of these partner organizations work directly with new immigrant communities in Mankato - some of them documented, some of them not.
So, when an Executive Order was signed that revoked the special status of churches, as well as other sensitive locations, to raids from Federal Immigration authorities, the congregation of St. John’s knew this was going to have an impact on them, and on the partners and friends who now shared their space.
Rector Cindi Brickson called a meeting between the heads of these organizations to build an action plan - discussing the protocols and practices that could help all those using the building act within their legal rights and protect those they are called to serve.
Together, they developed a checklist that walked step by step through a possible interaction with an ICE officer. They then vetted their checklist by a trusted immigration attorney. Once they had a protocol they felt would work for them, they had it translated into all the different languages spoken by those who used the building.
Along with transitioning from an open campus to a closed one - which requires church or organization members to greet those coming from programming at the door - they also trained all the key staff and volunteers who may be called upon to answer the door in the protocols they had developed. They wanted to ensure that each individual felt comfortable and confident in the checklist and what would be required of them. They now have the protocol posted near any door and in many key places throughout the building, ensuring that it’s always easy to find should the situation require it.
The last few weeks have brought sightings of ICE officials in Mankato, which has raised the anxiety in the community. But, with the protocol in place, they feel confident they’ve done what they can to be ready.
https://www.ilrc.org/red-cards-tarjetas-rojas
Red cards, developed by the Immigration Legal Resource Center outlining the rights and protections of all people.
The checklist developed by St. John's in Mankato