Fake Piety: How Kristi Noem and DHS use Religion to Justify Immigrant Cruelty [Video]

The recent actions of Kristi Noem and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reveal a troubling trend: the grotesque manipulation of religious faith to justify inhumane immigration policies. By bastardizing sacred Bible verses to serve their political agenda, they are not only dishonoring the core principles of faith but also exposing their moral bankruptcy.

In the past month, DHS has launched a blatant campaign of religious propaganda, sharing Bible-themed messages alongside images of militarized enforcement and detention centers. One video cites Isaiah 6, pairing divine callings with ominous images of helicopters and agents, as if desecrating the Holy Text to legitimize aggressive, often brutal actions. Another echoes Proverbs 28: “The wicked flee when no man pursueth; but the righteous are bold as a lion,” used to depict enforcement as a righteous mission rather than an act of cruelty.

Adding insult to injury, DHS posted the famous painting “American Progress,” a shameless glorification of Manifest Destiny—the very doctrine historically used to justify genocide and displacement of Indigenous peoples—under the caption “A Heritage to be proud of, a Homeland worth Defending.” This is not merely patriotic symbolism; it’s a deliberate attempt to cloak oppression in the language of divine destiny.

Why, in the midst of widespread moral and religious opposition, does DHS feel compelled to invoke scripture in defense of its actions? The answer lies in their desperation to cloak cruelty in sanctity. By framing deportations and ICE raids as divinely mandated, they seek to give their abuse of power a veneer of righteousness, pre-emptively pardoning any moral objections. It’s a sad reflection of their fear—if they truly believed their policies were just, they wouldn’t need religious cover.

This religious framing also serves to rally those within faith communities who might otherwise oppose such policies. Many faith leaders and believers across traditions have condemned the violence and inhumanity of Trump-era immigration enforcement. Yet DHS’s misuse of scripture is an attempt to manipulate our sacred texts, twisting the Bible’s consistent call to care for refugees, strangers, and the vulnerable.

The Bible is unequivocal: God’s concern for immigrants is clear throughout Scripture. Over 90 verses in the Old Testament reference the care for strangers, immigrants, and refugees, emphasizing hospitality and mercy. In the New Testament, Jesus Himself makes it clear that how we treat the stranger reflects how we treat Him directly. The tyrannical narratives pushed by DHS are a stark contradiction to these divine commands.

What is truly sinister is the possible awareness within DHS and Kristi Noem’s circle that they are deliberately distorting sacred teachings. It’s not ignorance but calculated deception, a desperate attempt to manufacture a divine endorsement for policies that are fundamentally unjust. They know well the biblical imperative to welcome the stranger—yet they choose to ignore it, substituting scripture with fear, hatred, and greed.

Let’s be plain: Government agencies like DHS are secular institutions. Their authority rests on the principles of justice, equality, and human dignity—not divine revelation. To suggest otherwise is to undermine the very foundation of our democracy and to diminish the role of faith in promoting compassion, not cruelty.

Their shameful hijacking of biblical language is a public confession: this is a morality crisis. If they truly believed in the righteousness of their cause, they wouldn’t need to enlist scripture as a shield. Instead, they are revealing to all that their policies are rooted in moral compromise and perhaps worse—an attempt to undermine the very religious values they claim to invoke.

The evangelical call for compassion, the Jewish tradition of hospitality, the Christian mandate to care for the stranger—these are not just religious clichés but moral imperatives. Kristi Noem, DHS, and the Trump administration’s apparent effort to distort these principles into weapons of division only underscores their moral failure.

It’s time for faith communities and moral Americans to stand up against this exploitation of religion. Our faith calls us to welcome the immigrant, to show mercy and justice, not to rewrite sacred texts to justify inhumane policies. Let’s reject their false piety and demand accountability—because justice and compassion are the true essence of faith, not political manipulation.

This is a moral and spiritual battle. We must oppose these efforts to distort religion for political ends and reaffirm our commitment to a humane, just, and compassionate approach to immigration. The Bible’s message is clear: love the stranger, stand for justice, and refuse to be deceived by those who would use faith as a weapon.