adminA shocking scene unfolded in St. Paul this weekend when anti-ICE agitators barged into Cities Church during a Sunday service, terrifying congregants and menacing families who had come to worship in peace. This was not a spontaneous outpouring of grief — it was a targeted political stunt meant to intimidate and silence people of faith.
Video from the livestream shows protesters chanting “Justice for Renee Good” and standing in the middle of the sanctuary while a pastor tried to carry on the service, turning a sacred hour into a staged political confrontation. Organizers even suggested they had identified a church staffer they believed was connected to federal immigration enforcement, and used that rumor to justify invading the pews.
Let’s be clear about why tempers are flaring across the Twin Cities: on January 7, 2026, Renée Good was shot during a volatile ICE operation in Minneapolis, a tragic event that has drawn national attention and rightly spurred questions about use of force. Independent reporting, including a private autopsy and eyewitness accounts, has added to the controversy and the grief felt by her family, while official investigations continue.
That does not give mobs license to batter down the doors of churches and shout down worshippers. Federal authorities are taking the disruption seriously — the Justice Department’s civil rights division has opened an investigation into potential violations and vowed to pursue charges where appropriate. If we are to protect religious liberty, the rule of law must be enforced, not mocked.
The spectacle drew condemnation from government officials and rightly raised alarms about where this kind of lawlessness is headed, with voices in Washington warning that targeting houses of worship sets a dangerous precedent. This is the same playbook we’ve seen from radical left groups: manufacture outrage, weaponize the moment, and then vanish into the next headline while real families pick up the pieces.
Americans who believe in law and order should not be shy about defending churches, churches’ right to worship without fear, and the men and women who serve in federal law enforcement. Callous grandstanding by activists should be condemned by leaders on both sides, and those who disrupted a house of worship must face consequences for their actions.
Conservative patriots must also demand accountability in the underlying case — full transparency about the shooting, respect for due process, and a sober, unemotional investigation that seeks facts rather than staging spectacles. Our country can grieve and demand justice without surrendering our streets and sanctuaries to mobs.
