Border czar Tom Homan on Thursday invited Catholic leadership to observe U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials performing their duties, asserting that illegal immigration is not a victimless crime.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has criticized ICE enforcement tactics and detention conditions, warning about fear in immigrant communities and expressing concern over “conditions in detention centers” and “lack of access to pastoral care.”
Pope Leo XIV similarly urged authorities to allow pastoral workers to minister to detainees and stated that longtime residents “never causing problems” have been “deeply affected” by current enforcement.
During an appearance on “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo,” Homan, a practicing Catholic, rejected claims that immigration enforcement is incompatible with human dignity. He argued that refusing to enforce immigration laws invites cartels, fuels trafficking, and increases deaths along migration routes north.
Homan also maintained that secure borders and barriers “save lives” by reducing the number of vulnerable women and children pushed into dangerous routes controlled by smugglers.
The debate intensified after a Boston parish altered a Nativity display to protest ICE actions, removing the Holy Family and replacing it with a sign reading “ICE was here,” according to the National Catholic Reporter. The Archdiocese of Boston publicly objected and called for the display’s removal as inappropriate politicization of sacred objects.
Homan warned that such messaging encourages hostility toward agents and cautioned that rhetoric surrounding ICE has become dangerous.
Homan defended what he called a historic immigration enforcement push under President Donald Trump, arguing it prioritizes “public safety threats” and “national security threats,” while still enforcing the law against anyone found in the country illegally. He claimed the administration’s current pace is exceeding prior benchmarks, with the operation nearing 600,000 removals in less than a year and projecting higher numbers as the administration plans to add 10,000 more agents and triple the size of the ICE enforcement branch.
A major component of this effort involves locating migrant children who disappeared into the U.S. interior after entering during the Biden administration. Homan reported that roughly half a million children were smuggled into the country, with the government “losing track” of about 300,000. The Trump administration has already located 62,456 children, some found safe with relatives but others in “forced labor” or “forced sexual slavery.”
Homan added that even those who have “aged out” past 18 will still be pursued because exploitation does not end at adulthood.
By Charlie McCarthy
