A protester holds up a candle with the image of La Virgen de Guadalupe while marching in Los Angeles during a January 2026 vigil in solidarity with immigrants facing raids in Minneapolis.

On Ash Wednesday, 2026, two Roman Catholic priests and a religious sister entered an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview, Illinois, to celebrate Mass with detainees inside.

It might seem like a simple, routine event: a religious service to mark the start of Lent. But the Mass represented a legal win for the Coalition for Spiritual and Public Leadership, based in Chicago. Among its founders are Michael N. Okińczyc-Cruz and Joanna Arellano-Gonzalez, a young married couple dedicated to advocacy for migrant rights.

Originally published on theconversation.com, part of the BLOX Digital Content Exchange.

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