Amid code violations, interfaith leaders rally behind Bell church offering housing to asylum seekers

BELL, Calif. (KABC) -- Interfaith leaders from across Southern California are rallying behind a Lutheran church in the city of Bell that's offering housing to asylum seekers.

From the outside, it may seem like an ordinary church. But inside, Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church of Bell is a refuge to 45 migrants seeking asylum in the U.S.

As best as he can, 23-year-old Ibrahim Ba explained that he left Mauritania in Northwest Africa due to injustice and the ongoing practice of slavery. Ba is part of a group of asylum seekers the church stepped up to house about a year ago in partnership with interfaith nonprofit, Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice or CLUE.

"The Department of Homeland security asked the church, can you house them? Can you give them housing and we'll release them without a bond," said Cynthia Anderson-Barker, a civil rights attorney with the National Lawyers Guild.

Pastor Maria Elena Montalvo described a challenging year due to code enforcement citations, to the point they were left without money, she said.

The citations add up to $1,300.

Bell City Manager Michael Antwine told Eyewitness News the city was unaware the church had, for years, provided temporary shelter to migrants, adding that code enforcement got involved.

"We are not against the church housing folks, but we do have significant concerns about the way they're housing them," Antwine said.

The citations list code violations that generally address safety, without specifying what was found on the property.

"At this time, the church has not provided the city with any plans on how they plan to mitigate or make some necessary improvements to the facility," Antwine said.

Montalvo said she has not received a list of the repairs or changes required to keep housing migrants, and that she wants to work with the city to comply with those.

Eyewitness News sought clarification from the city manager but did not receive those specifications. Some concerns Antwine stated during an interview included electrical capacity, heating and HVAC.

Anderson-Barker said the church does have legal standing.

"There's a provision in the government code which says when there's an emergency housing crisis that certain rules around housing habitability can be relaxed," she said.

Still, Anderson-Barker and interfaith leaders called on the City Council for help at its Oct. 23 meeting.

"We have a network of lawyers who are definitely prepared to step in, help out, work out differences and find solutions," Anderson-Barker told the City Council.

Father Richard Estrada, a CLUE member and a leader of the sanctuary movement in California roughly 40 years ago, said that Montalvo is following a biblical mandate.

"'Look after your brothers and sisters and do it in my name,' said Jesus," Estrada said, adding that the sanctuary movement remains alive. "We're all older now. We can't do what we did, and so there's new leaders now."

Antwine reciprocated a desire to work with the church to create a plan. Finding a way is what one pastor called on city leaders to do.

"You may say that there's no room in the city of Bell, but Jesus would say find a way," said pastor Stephen "Cue" Jn-Marie of The Row Church and CLUE.

Bell Mayor Ali Saleh ordered a report back to the City Council from the city manager.