Ricardo Gonzalez Montes was arrested by ICE at a rodeo in Sikeston, Missouri, after presenting identification to buy a beer. Williams said healthcare in the jail is almost nonexistent and her father has been denied the right to talk to a priest.
"Through this time, I have learned that you cannot give up on hope. You have to have hope. You have to keep fighting," Williams told a group of about 150 laypeople, clergy, and leaders gathered Oct. 24 in St. Louis for "Witness to Hope: Care of Immigrant Communities from a Catholic Perspective."
The event, which included presentations and time for discussion, was sponsored by the Archdiocese of St. Louis, Catholic IMMpact, Hope Border Institute, and the Center for Migration Studies.
The participants came from all four Missouri dioceses as well as those in Illinois, Nebraska, and Iowa, along with representatives from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, local Catholic Charities groups, and CHA.
Bishop Ralph O'Donnell of Jefferson City, Missouri, celebrated Mass during the gathering.
A national voice and issue
Fr. Scott Jones is the episcopal vicar for the parishes in the northern part of the Archdiocese of St. Louis, an area with many immigrants. He spoke for Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski, who was ill and could not attend the event, and pointed out Archbishop Rozanski's increasingly strong voice nationally on immigration.
In early October, Archbishop Rozanski and the Archdiocese of St. Louis filed a federal lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security, alleging that the facility is keeping detained immigrants from practicing their Catholic faith. Fr. Jones pointed out that it is an interfaith issue in that the U.S. Constitution guarantees the right for people to receive pastoral care while they are in detention.
"If some of what we see happening in our country dehumanizes us, and it dehumanizes all of us, today we witness hope," Fr. Jones said. "And the goal of today is by the end of today we leave here feeling rehumanized and also excited about the next steps."
Increasing deportations
Kevin Appleby, the senior fellow for policy and communications for the Center for Migration Studies, spelled out Catholic teaching on immigration: The church teaches that sovereign nations have a right to control and manage their borders, but they have to respect human dignity and rights while doing so, he said.
"That's where the current situation breaks from Catholic teaching, because we're seeing the violation ... of human dignity in this mass deportation campaign," he said. Pope John Paul II even said that mass deportations are "intrinsically evil," Appleby pointed out.
Families are getting separated, people sent to countries they don't even know, agents are wearing masks and arresting people while wearing "shock gloves," and 1.5 million immigrants have had their legal status removed, he said. "This is really the tip of the iceberg, where human dignity is being violated, and where we need to speak up to what's happening," he said.
Kris Walentik, director of legal services for Catholic Charities of St. Louis, said that monthly migrant encounters at the U.S.-Mexico border have slowed to a trickle in President Donald Trump's second term, but ICE's total detained population has increased, to nearly 66,000 people by mid-July, up from about 40,000 in 2024. About 62% are arrested by police, with 57% of the total at a traffic stop. About 15% are getting arrested during immigration check-ins, she said.
"These are people that have been in the process already, following the process, are working, and they're checking in as they're told and being separated from their families," Walentik said.
While the government says that 20% of those detained have a criminal conviction, the government is including traffic tickets in that percentage, said Ken Schmitt, an immigration lawyer with U.S. Legal Solutions in St. Louis.
Responding to ICE
So what should you do if law enforcement or ICE shows up at a property, such as a church or school? Tom Buckley, general counsel for the Archdiocese of St. Louis, advises people to designate a lead administrator at each facility, stay calm and respectful, and call a lawyer. Buckley asks clients to take a picture of whatever paperwork is presented and send it to him.
"You'd be amazed at the difference it makes when you have a lawyer in the process, being polite but firm," he said. "It puts the law enforcement agent on notice that OK, we're going to have to do this by the book."
Schmitt reminded the group that they cannot interfere with ICE, but they are allowed to witness and film what ICE does. He said that the Immigrant Legal Resource Center has more information on what is allowed.
Catholic efforts
Some Catholic initiatives are already in place to respond. Celina Marquez Redd, outreach and policy advisor for the USCCB, spoke about the conference's "You Are Not Alone" campaign as a response to the heightened increase in immigration enforcement. She pointed out that about 29% of Catholics are either foreign born or the child of a migrant, and that 58% of Hispanic Catholics and 78% of Asian Catholics are foreign born.
"The problem is too vast, and we need to approach it as a whole church, bringing in the strengths of different Catholic entities as well," she said.
Katy Gresham is a board member of Abide in Love St. Louis, a grassroots group that arranges volunteers to make contact with immigrants in ICE detention. They ask what immigrants need, communicate with family members, and connect them with resources. There are opportunities to start an Abide in Love affiliate in other areas, she said.
"We're happy to walk alongside people who are interested in jumping in and serving families, because it is such a need," she said.
Kevin Kuehl is the coordinator of the Immigrant & Refugee Ministry, a collaboration of eight Catholic parishes in St. Louis to assist, welcome, empower, and accompany immigrants and refugees.
"The parish is where the action needs to happen. There is a lot of power there," he said.
He said the group offers volunteers to accompany immigrants to ICE offices and help with language interpretation. An annual immigration Mass, held in October at St. Pius V Catholic Church in St. Louis, was a "beautiful celebration of hope" attended by more than 500 people from at least 18 countries around the world, he said.
"I want to leave you with that as you're considering how your community can respond," he said. "That we are collaborating, we're collaborating in unity, and moving towards hope."