Catholic bishops are expressing opposition to a planned increase in migrant detention capacity.
Catholic bishops are voicing their objection to a plan from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to increase capacity of migrant detention centers as President Donald Trump pushes forward with his mass-deportation efforts.
An ICE document shared by Republican New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte shows the agency intends to spend $38.3 billion from last year’s budget reconciliation bill to bolster detention space. ICE is considering an acquisition and renovation of eight large-scale detention centers, 16 processing facilities, and 10 “turnkey” facilities where ICE already operates.
The plan includes the purchase of warehouses for detention. The plan would increase bed capacity from about 70,000 to about 92,600.
“These plans are deeply troubling,” Bishop Brendan J. Cahill, chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Migration, said in a statement.
Cahill said: “The thought of holding thousands of families in massive warehouses should challenge the conscience of every American.”
Most people targeted by ICE for detention and deportation are likely to be Catholics in six out of 10 cases, according to a March 2025 joint report by the USCCB and World Relief. The report said
