Silence Becomes Complicity: A Statement from CST’s Co-Presidents
Enough. What we are witnessing in Minneapolis—and in communities across this nation—is the abuse of federal power masquerading as law enforcement. Armed ICE agents operating with impunity and the use of force in public spaces are not acts of public safety; they are acts that spread fear and erode trust. Claremont School of Theology approaches this moment grounded in a long-standing tradition of faith-based resistance to dehumanization and domination. Our commitments to justice and the sacred worth of every person compel us to speak when power exceeds its moral bounds.
We believe these actions stand in direct contradiction to the compassion of God revealed in our faith traditions—a compassion that calls us to protect the vulnerable and refuse violence disguised as order.
This is not theoretical for us. CST students and alums are serving on the front lines, directly confronting the human consequences of ICE enforcement and bearing pastoral witness to fear, trauma, and loss. When presidential power is used to undermine civil liberties and dehumanize people for political gain, silence becomes complicity.
We reject this violence without qualification and name it plainly as morally indefensible and incompatible with the values that must guide a just and compassionate society.
Grant Hagiya and Kah-Jin Jeffrey Kuan, CST Co-Presidents
Rev. Patricia Farris, Chair of the CST Board of Trustees