The DIGNIDAD (Dignity) Act could put long-term, law-abiding, hard-working, tax-paying immigrants and families on a pathway to U.S. citizenship. But it has divided evangelicals, illustrating divisions over President Donald Trump’s immigration policies six months before midterm elections.
Trump-supporting faith groups embrace his policy of deporting all immigrants in the U.S. illegally, not just “the worst of the worst.” Or as Trump put it in a Holy Week post: “’If you import The Third World, you become The Third World!’ — AND THAT’S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN TO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AS LONG AS I AM PRESIDENT.”
DIGNIDAD was introduced last July by a coalition of 20 Republican House members and has the support of conservative Hispanic faith groups. An independent summary says the bill would “strengthen border security in the United States” and “provide undocumented individuals with an opportunity to obtain legal status if they meet certain requirements.”
Faith groups supporting DIGNIDAD include Anti-Defamation League, Asian American Christian Collaborative, Christian Family Coalition of Florida, Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, Evangelical Immigration Table, Jewish Federation of North America, National Association of Evangelicals, National Latino Evangelical Coalition, World Relief, and National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, led by Samuel Rodriguez.
Samuel Rodriguez
Rodriguez, a Trump adviser, said DIGNIDAD “creates a legal solution for good, God-fearing, hard-working men and women who have been here 15, 20, 25 years — those whose children were raised here, who attend our churches and many who don’t even have parking tickets.”
A survey of voters published April 12 shows Hispanic voters souring on Trump’s aggressive tactics and deportations.
But the Family Research Council and other pro-Trump Christian groups claim DIGNIDAD is “dead on arrival” because it would “grant widespread amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants.”
FRC’s article, which ricocheted around the conservative ecosphere, quoted an anti-immigration expert who derided the bill’s unwieldy and Latino-friendly name: “Dignity for Immigrants while Guarding our Nation to Ignite and Deliver the American Dream Act of 2025” or the “DIGNIDAD (Dignity) Act of 2025.”
“The first clue that HR-4393 wasn’t written to pass lies in its name,” said the expert. “Respectfully, naming your bill the ‘DIGNIDAD Act’ and then providing subtitles is the ‘press one for English’ of legislative drafting.”
FRC’s expert continued: “There are, admittedly, good-faith arguments for why some aliens who came illegally or overstayed their periods of nonimmigrant admission should be allowed to remain, but most amnesties have failed or, worse, simply encouraged more illegal immigration because would-be illegal migrants don’t read the fine print and smugglers have worse ethics (but better sales pitches) than telephone extended-warranty peddlers.”
Christian activist group Intercessors for America offered a prayer against DIGNIDAD: “Lord, we ask you to uphold the rule of law and stop any effort to grant mass amnesty that undermines justice in our nation. Give our leaders the courage to put Americans first and enforce our immigration laws with integrity.”
Mike Collins
Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., who has 100% endorsements from Christian “pro-family” groups, said dignity should be reserved for Americans murdered by illegal immigrants, not for illegal immigrant murderers.
Trump and other anti-immigrant advcoates frequently claim immigrants are the source of massive crime and violence in the United States while there is no evidence to support these claims.
Focus on the Family’s Daily Citizen doesn’t routinely cover crime but it offers regular coverage of crimes committed against white women by nonwhite illegal immigrants with headlines such as “Career Criminal and Illegal Immigrant Charged with Violent Murder of Virginia Mom.”
Articles like these can help perpetuate notions of a “migrant crime wave” while studies cited by the Brennan Center show that’s a myth: “Data does not support claims that the United States is experiencing a surge in crime caused by immigrants.”
The Center for Baptist Leadership supports a hardline approach to illegal immigrants and their children, arguing the 14th Amendment does not guarantee birthright citizenship to children born here.
Trump also is ramping up pressure on immigrants to self-deport by systematically eliminating their access to public education, subsidized housing, business loans or commercial driver’s licenses affecting 200,000 truck drivers, reported The New York Times.
Trump also has replaced judges he felt were too soft on immigration rights. “Era of Amnesty Is Over,” said the White House press office. “President Trump Restores Rule of Law to Immigration Courts:”