Three activists involved in a protest that interrupted a church service in the city of St. Paul, Minnesota, were arrested this Thursday (22), the United States Department of Justice reported. The measure comes days after protesters invaded the Cities Church temple on Sunday (19) to protest against the actions of immigration agents in the state.
According to authorities, the arrests were lawyer and civil rights activist Nekima Levy Armstrong, St. Paul school board member Chauntyll Louisa Allen and Armed Forces veteran William Kelly. The three participated directly in the demonstration that interrupted the religious service held at Cities Church.
According to Associated Press (AP), the protesters accused one of the church’s pastors, David Easterwood, of also holding leadership roles in a local office of the US Immigration Agency (ICE), which allegedly motivated the protest inside the temple. During the action, activists chanted slogans such as “out with ICE” and “Justice for Renée Good”, in reference to the woman who died after being shot by an ICE agent earlier this January, in Minneapolis.
United States Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the arrests in posts on the social network X and stated that President Donald Trump’s government does not tolerate attacks on places of worship. According to Bondi, an investigation was opened by his department quickly after Sunday’s protest that interrupted the religious service.
According to FBI Director Kash Patel, Armstrong and Allen were charged under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE Act), federal legislation that also prohibits obstruction or intimidation of people attending religious services.
