East Tennessee clergy join interfaith call to end jail's ICE agreement

Bishop Brian Cole and eight other Episcopal clergy in the Knoxville diocese signed a letter with more than 100 interfaith leaders from Christian, Jewish, and Muslim communities in Knox County, Tennessee, calling on officials to end the county's detention agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and halt expansion of ICE operations in the region. About 30 signers gathered for a press conference on September 16 in front of the Roger D. Wilson Detention Facility to share testimony about how aggressive enforcement tactics have affected immigrants and their families. The letter states that the shared moral foundation of their traditions demands loving both God and neighbor as one commandment, and that the community's detention bed contract with ICE, in effect since 2018, has resulted in more than 5,000 people being detained on immigration matters since 2025. The clergy called for an end to deportations, especially of those legally in the United States. The Reverend RJ Powell of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Maryville, who wrote the letter, noted that Episcopal baptismal vows to respect human dignity and seek justice and peace apply to all people without exception. Clergy have also reported being repeatedly denied pastoral access to ICE detainees, though they can visit inmates held for other reasons. Powell emphasized the need for continued multifaith and ecumenical partnership on the issue.

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Source: Episcopal News Service — https://episcopalnewsservice.org/2026/09/16/east-tennessee-clergy-cosign-interfaith-letter-calling-for-end-to-county-jails-ice-enforcement-agreement/