Minnesota school board member arrested after storming church to protest ICE agents

ST. PAUL, Minn. – A member of the St. Paul Board of Education and a prominent activist has been arrested by federal authorities following a protest at a local church.

Chauntyll Allen, who has held her elected seat on the board since 2020, was one of three individuals taken into custody. She faces charges of conspiracy to deprive others of their constitutional rights.

The arrests stem from a Jan. 18 incident in which a group of anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) protesters entered Cities Church in St. Paul. The group targeted a pastor at the church who also serves as an ICE agent.

Video footage from the scene showed congregants fleeing in panic as protesters shouted during the service. In a later interview, Allen defended her involvement, stating the disruption was necessary "to get the message across." She compared her actions to the biblical account of Jesus overturning tables.

State Rep. Elliott Engen criticized the incident, arguing that local school boards have transformed into "activist boards" rather than focusing on education and fiscal management. He said that school curricula are increasingly being driven by political ideologies.

A spokesperson for the school district said officials are aware of the situation but declined to comment on pending legal matters.

The arrest of Chauntyll Allen serves as more than a localized legal dispute; it is a high-stakes microcosm of the "culture wars" currently fracturing the American public education system. The incident underscores a fundamental institutional friction: whether school boards should remain strictly confined to academic governance and fiscal oversight, or whether they have evolved into legitimate platforms for socio-political activism.

State Representative Elliott Engen’s response has effectively framed the confrontation, expanding the scope of the incident beyond the immediate disruption of a church service. By linking the protest to broader conservative grievances—specifically the implementation of ethnic studies (often categorized by critics as Critical Race Theory), comprehensive sex education, and LGBTQ+ curricula—Engen has transformed a local demonstration against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) into a national proxy battle over school district priorities.

From the perspective of Allen and her supporters, the arrest represents a necessary act of civil disobedience against a federal agency they argue "terrorizes" immigrant communities. To her critics, however, the action constitutes a flagrant breach of religious liberty and an overstepping of the professional boundaries required of an elected official.

Moving forward, this case is positioned to become a national touchstone. Both ends of the political spectrum are likely to cite the fallout as a definitive example of the volatile intersection between grassroots activism, educational policy, and the rule of law.

This incident has the potential to deeply divide the Vietnamese-American community. On one hand, ICE policies are a major concern for many immigrant families—ranging from those awaiting F2B family reunions to those on H-1B visas—and the anti-ICE message often resonates with a significant portion of the population. In the hearts of Little Saigons across the country, from the local nail salons to the phở restaurants, there is a shared anxiety regarding immigration enforcement and its impact on the community. On the other hand, the act of entering a house of worship to cause a disturbance is seen by many as an extreme and unacceptable tactic. For the religious segment of the community, particularly among Catholics and Protestants, such behavior is likely to be strongly condemned, regardless of the protest's underlying political motives.