Residents living in the country’s “refugee capital” push back against Lancaster County’s 287(g) agreements with ICE.
Lancaster County may be known for its rolling farmlands and rich Pennsylvania Dutch history, but in recent years, the region has become the country’s refugee capital with 20 times more refugees than the rest of the US.
That, and the fact that Lancaster County is home to over 30,000 immigrants, has local residents on edge following the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) activity in Minneapolis, Minnesota following the shooting deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Good by federal agents.
“ I do a lot of work with immigrants and refugees as an independent person helping them resettle and helping them get used to life in the United States, and I am upset about the way that immigrants and refugees are being treated by this administration,” Mark Freeman, a long-time Lititz resident, said in an interview.
Freeman pointed to what happened in Minneapolis as an example of how out of control DHS is under President Donald Trump’s leadership.
“ I just think it’s been seen around the country, but particularly in Minnesota, the past two months that ICE, [Customs and Border Patrol], that whole part of Department of Homeland Security is out of control,” Freeman said.
On Saturday, over 250 Lancaster residents packed Blossom Hill Mennonite Church for a town hall regarding 287(g) agreements Lancaster County’s District Attorney’s Office and Sheriff’s Office have with ICE. There are currently 55 law enforcement agencies across the state that participate in the 287(g) program.
These agreements give local law enforcement officials the power to carry out the federal immigration agenda and arrest, investigate, and process immigrants for suspected violations.
”The biggest trend that we are seeing is an increase of arrests from people outside of custody,” Michelle Hines, a member of Solidarity Lancaster, told the overflowing crowd.
ICE arrests in Lancaster County have dramatically increased over the past three years. In 2023, there were 10 arrests, which increased to 39 in 2024 and then jumped to 83 in 2025.
In 2023 and 2024, most of those arrests were by the prison or probation office, but that changed in 2025 when 55% of immigration-related arrests were made outside of the custody of the local legal system.
“ This is a significant change in priorities, and it shows that the Trump administration’s policies of shifting priority away from criminal offenders and to just any and all immigrants has made its way to Lancaster County,” Hines added.
Trump’s heavy handed tactics in Minnesota have inspired faith leaders from around the country to get involved following Good’s and Pretti’s deaths, and it’s no different with some in Lancaster’s Mennonite Community.
Over 100 Mennonites protested inside a local Target earlier this month because the company is allegedly allowing ICE agents to use their parking lots to stage raids or detain immigrants.
“ The immigrant community in Lancaster is really important,” Sarah Bagge told The Keystone. “I am really proud to be a part of a community that’s so welcoming, and I know that Lancaster has the highest per capita refugee resettlement in the country.”
She added, “ Mennonites have done a lot of refugee resettlement work, and have a lot of very close personal ties to immigrants and refugees in this community because of that.”
