A story on CNN tells of various reactions to a nativity scene outside Missiongathering Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, which includes figures of tall men clad in black with masks drawn up to hide their faces, looming over the kneeling figures of Mary and Joseph as they gaze on the baby Jesus. As CNN reports, “the figures, dressed in flak jackets emblazoned with the acronym for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, are depicted approaching the Holy Family and the Wise Men with handcuffs, as if preparing to make an arrest.”
The scene is clearly a reference to the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement crackdown in the city, which has seen hundreds of people arrested in recent weeks, and set off a groundswell of support for the local immigrant community.
Church Pastor, Andrew Shipley, speaking to CNN, explained that the nativity was “supposed to be disturbing because what’s happening in our city is disturbing, what’s happening in cities all over the country is disturbing,” he said.
Read the full story on CNN here.