Letters to the Editor | June 9, 2026

As our administration wages war against Iran, we are reminded daily that Iran is a nation defined by religious nationalism — a system where political authority is fused with a single religious ideology, and dissent is treated as a threat to the nation’s spiritual purity. We are told this is dangerous, destabilizing, and incompatible with democratic values. On that point, I agree.

What’s harder to ignore is the irony that, while condemning Iran’s model abroad, we are watching a homegrown version of Christian nationalism gain traction here. This ideology insists that America was founded as a Christian nation, that government should enforce a particular religious doctrine, and that political authority can be divinely sanctioned. These are not expressions of personal faith. They are political claims dressed in theological language.

The consequences are already visible. FBI data show that in recent years, hate crimes have surged to their highest levels in decades, with sharp increases in incidents targeting religious minorities, LGBTQ Americans, and racial and ethnic communities. When leaders describe opponents as ungodly, when groups are cast as existential threats to the nation’s spiritual identity, and when political conflict is framed as “spiritual warfare,” it creates a permission structure for real‑world harm.

In other words, we are condemning Iran for the very dynamic we are beginning to tolerate at home: a fusion of religion, nationalism, and grievance that inevitably produces intolerance and, too often, violence. It is difficult to claim we are defending democracy abroad if we are quietly eroding it within our own borders.

Steve Abramovitz, Cherry Hill

Remember when Barack Obama was president and negotiated the nuclear deal with Iran? Former Sen. Pat Toomey and other Republican senators wrote directly to Iran to try to kill the deal. Why not have Democrats do the same, but in this case, end the war and reinstate the Obama deal that was working?

George Magakis Jr., Norristown

I’ve visited Delaney Hall twice since late April. The stories that detainees shared with me about the poor conditions inside were heartbreaking, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) track record hasn’t earned the agency any benefit of the doubt.

I’m proud of New Jersey’s delegation for its continual in-person oversight, especially since congressional visits are about the only access the outside world can get to Delaney Hall right now. I’m also grateful to Gov. Mikie Sherrill for fighting to change that, and for her balancing act to sustain pressure on those running Delaney Hall while maintaining public safety.

Across the country, we have witnessed heavy-handed tactics by federal immigration agents who repeatedly turn tense situations into dangerous — and even fatal — encounters. Sherrill’s decisiveness to get ICE out of the protests and reestablish local control potentially saved lives — and will make it safer for demonstrators to peacefully organize.

And the peacefulness of those demonstrations is critical. When my dear, late friend John Lewis promoted “good trouble,” he specifically called for nonviolent civil disobedience — not assaulting law enforcement or destroying property.

With the ability to peacefully demonstrate no longer threatened by ICE, the opportunity is now to put the focus back on the core issue: The need to stop the Trump administration’s gross mistreatment of detainees at Delaney Hall.

Donald Norcross, U.S. House of Representatives, New Jersey’s 1st Congressional District

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