The newly elected president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), Archbishop Paul Coakley, cautioned Sunday that immigrant communities are living in “widespread” fear as a result of President Donald Trump’s aggressive deportation policies. Speaking on CBS’s Face the Nation, Coakley acknowledged the government’s right to enforce immigration laws while stressing that enforcement must uphold the inherent dignity of every person.
During the interview, Coakley said the current climate of immigration enforcement has generated anxiety among many immigrants. “People have a right to live in security and without fear of random deportations,” he said. Coakley emphasized the Church’s teaching that human dignity is God‑given and cannot be removed by the state. “We always have to treat people with dignity. The state doesn’t award it, and the state can’t take it away,” he added.
Coakley’s remarks reflect ongoing tensions within the Church on immigration. In November, the USCCB issued a formal statement endorsing the principle that nations have a responsibility to maintain a “just and orderly immigration system for the sake of the common good,” a teaching supported by Pope Leo XIV. The statement acknowledged the legitimate role of border controls in preventing trafficking and protecting citizens, but also highlighted the social and spiritual costs of strict enforcement on immigrant families and communities.
The bishops pointed to troubling conditions in detention centers and the difficulties clergy face in providing pastoral care to migrants. They described a contemporary debate marked by fear and the vilification of immigrants, a dynamic that has intensified under the Trump administration’s expanded deportation efforts.
Coakley, a social conservative, was elected USCCB president alongside Bishop Daniel Flores of Brownsville, Texas, who is known for advocating on behalf of immigrants. While affirming the Church’s support for national sovereignty in immigration policy, Coakley called on political leaders to be generous in welcoming those fleeing danger and persecution. He said people have the right to stay in their homelands, but also “ought to be allowed to migrate when conditions in their homeland are unsafe.”
Pope Leo XIV has reinforced this balanced teaching, affirming that no nation should be forced to adopt open borders while urging humane treatment of migrants. In a recent speech in Lebanon, the Pope said the Church does not want anyone forced to leave their country but supports the right to seek safety when necessary.
Public opinion among U.S. Catholics, however, shows a significant portion of voters backing broad enforcement measures. A December poll by EWTN News and RealClear Opinion Research found that 54 percent of Catholic voters support large‑scale detention and deportation of unauthorized immigrants, with 30 percent opposing such policies.
As immigration enforcement continues in Trump’s second term, Coakley reiterated that Church leaders will advocate for policies that maintain moral clarity and uphold human dignity. “I don’t think we can ever say that the end justifies the means,” he said, emphasizing that respect for human dignity must be central to immigration decisions.
