They Put A Clerical Collar On A Protester — And The Media Worships The Story

CNN’s Erin Burnett OutFront turned its October 9, 2025 broadcast into a showcase for a Chicago pastor who claimed he was attacked by ICE agents while peacefully praying outside a detention facility in Broadview, Illinois. Dressed in a clerical collar and introduced as a “Reverend” and “Pastor,” the man told Burnett he was suddenly struck by pepper balls and shoved to the ground without warning. But the segment felt less like journalism and more like theater — another made-for-TV moment designed to paint ICE as the villain and the protester as a saint. And CNN expects you to believe it.

According to his own account, “There were no ICE vehicles attempting to leave the facility, and I was standing to the side in a gesture of prayer and praying verbally for the ICE officers and those detained inside.” He insists he did nothing wrong — didn’t block any vehicles, didn’t flip anyone off, and certainly didn’t resist. Then came his most absurd defense — the one that tells you everything you need to know about this performance:

“It’s categorically false. There were no ICE vehicles attempting to leave the facility, and I was standing to the side in a gesture of prayer and praying verbally for the ICE officers and those detained inside. I find it interesting that this individual believes I flipped them the bird. Because theologically, as I’ve been praying for all of these people, I have been hoping that the Holy Spirit will descend upon them and convert their hearts and minds. To the extent that the Holy Spirit appears as a bird, perhaps there is spiritual truth to her claim.”

That might be the most ridiculous spin ever aired on CNN. When accused of flipping off officers, he literally turned it into a metaphor about the Holy Spirit.

ICE’s account paints a different picture. DHS officials said protesters were warned to stop blocking vehicles and impeding operations. When some refused, officers used pepper balls and chemical agents to clear the area — a crowd-control measure, not a targeted attack on a pastor. Rev. David Black, pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Chicago, chose to stand on the front lines of that protest. Wearing a clerical collar while blocking an ICE facility doesn’t make him a martyr — it makes him a protester disobeying lawful orders and hiding behind religion to score political points.

This isn’t about prayer; it’s about perception. Activists know that looking peaceful while provoking confrontation gets the cameras rolling. CNN took the bait, giving a platform to a man whose account raises more questions than it answers. Want the truth? Demand the unedited footage. Check the pastor’s affiliations. Question the narrative. Because when the media hands you a “holy victim” outside an ICE facility, it’s usually just an activist in costume.