Kirk Franklin has never been one of those gospel artists that does what’s expected, with his music and his opinions on pop culture happenings often being in stark contrast to the broader gospel community. And his latest opinions on the church and all the chaos happening through ICE is yet another example of that.
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If you noticed, there haven’t been too many gospel singers or church leaders getting involved or even sharing their two cents about ICE and the fact that they’re wreaking havoc nationwide. And for Franklin, enough is clearly enough. Speaking to Baller Alert on the red carpet before the 2026 Grammys, Franklin shared that the church ought to be more “intentional” about saying something and that they should be putting their hands to work and caring for others since the government doesn’t look to be doing so.
In a surprising statement, he also mentioned the fact that Jesus’ parents were immigrants. Which, if you think about it—he just might have a point. Biblically, at the time that Jesus was born, he and his parents had to leave for Egypt because there was an order from King Herod at the time to kill newborn male baby boys under two years old born in Bethlehem. Based off definition, that would technically make Jesus and his family refugees as they were literally leaving their home country out of fear and persecution. While they did take up residence in Egypt, they all eventually decided to move to Nazareth to continue raising Jesus.
“I think that we should be very intentional about being very vocal about, first of all, Jesus’ momma and daddy were immigrants. So we just need to be very careful to not be arrogant and prideful. And I think that we need to get in the streets and to be able to save and love as many people as we can,” Franklin said. “And when I say ‘save,’ I’m not talking about just their souls—I’m talking about their lives.”
He continued: “We need to be feeding people, taking care of people, looking out for people. Because the way this government is happening, with this change in AI, it’s gonna put a lot of people out of work. So we need to be more compassionate about the human race.”
Sadly, even though Franklin had a point, some folks on social media didn’t exactly agree.
“He working my nerves and I cant believe Im saying this,” said one user on Instagram.
“Kirk… Not right now,” said another.
“This is what Malcolm x was talking about how politics and entertainment should not go together it’s clownish smh,” one other user noted.
However, there were some folks who understood where folks were coming from.
“He’s right. Technically they were because traveled from Nazareth to Bethlehem and then to Egypt. You guys should read your Bible for clarity,” one user wrote on social media.
“Majority of people have never read a Bible or any book in their life for that matter so this would go over their head,” said another.
Added one other person: “The same people cheering on ice attacking people in the street would of cheered on the Roman soldiers while they pierce Jesus’s side.”
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