DHS awarding $110 million to faith-based organizations and nonprofits to enhance security
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced it is awarding $110 million to faith-based organizations and nonprofit groups nationwide to enhance their security. This initiative,managed through FEMA’s Nonprofit Security Grant Program,aims to improve protective measures such as surveillance cameras,alert systems,access control,lighting,gates,and staff training. The funding comes in response to recent violent attacks targeting religious communities, including a deadly shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, where two children were killed, and many others injured.
Secretary Kristi noem emphasized that the grants are intended to help houses of worship,schools,and community centers defend against violence and radical threats. The proclamation also highlighted the troubling rise in violence against various religious groups in the U.S. over recent years, including numerous attacks on Catholic churches, anti-Muslim hate crimes, and antisemitic incidents. Specifically, documented attacks on Catholic churches numbered 235 between 2023 and 2025, while anti-Muslim complaints increased, and antisemitic incidents surged following the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023.
Noem stated that the grant money is prioritized for protecting communities where people gather for worship, rather than funding political projects or climate initiatives. This effort reflects a broader governmental response to growing religiously motivated violence and aims to bolster the safety and security of vulnerable faith-based institutions.
DHS awarding $110 million to faith-based organizations and nonprofit groups to enhance security
Homeland Security Security Kristi Noem announced on Friday that she will award $110 million to faith-based organizations and nonprofit groups across the country to increase security, following the shooting at a Minneapolis catholic school.
FEMA’s Nonprofit Security Grant Program is administering the funds to enhance security measures, including cameras, warning and alert systems, gates and lighting, access control systems, and training programs for staff, Noem said.
“In the face of violent criminals and radical organizations intent on hurting American communities, the Trump Administration is helping houses of worship, schools and community centers to harden their defenses against attacks and protect themselves,” Noem posted on X.
Robin Westman, who was born Robert, opened fire at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on Wednesday, killing two children and injuring 17 other people.
Joseph Thompson, the acting U.S. attorney for the District of Minnesota, said on Thursday that the shooter expressed “pure, indiscriminate hate” against Catholics, Jews, and many other groups.
“The shooter expressed hate towards almost every group imaginable. The shooter expressed hate towards black people. The shooter expressed hate towards Mexican people. The shooter expressed hate towards Christian people. The shooter expressed hate towards Jewish people,” Thompson said.
FREQUENT VIOLENCE AGAINST CATHOLIC CHURCHES WAS WELL DOCUMENTED BEFORE MINNESOTA SHOOTING
In recent years, there has been an increase in violence against religious groups.
Between 2023 and 2025, there were 235 reported incidents of violence against Catholic churches, according to a tracker from CatholicVote, a conservative religious advocacy group. The organization began documenting the attacks in May 2020 and has recorded over 500 attacks since.
In another act of religiously motivated violence, Wadea al Fayoume, a 6-year-old Muslim boy, was murdered after being stabbed 26 times in an anti-Muslim attack at his Illinois home in 2023.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations reported 8,658 complaints regarding anti-Muslim and anti-Arab incidents in 2024, a 7.4% increase from the previous year.
Acts of antisemitic violence have continued to haunt the United States. In 2018, 11 people were killed and six were injured after a shooting at the Pittsburgh Tree of Life synagogue.
PHILADELPHIA JEWISH HISTORY MUSEUM VANDALIZED FOR SECOND WEEK IN A ROW
Since Oct. 7, 2023, the day Hamas attacked Israel, there have been over 10,000 antisemitic incidents in the U.S., according to the Anti-Defamation League.
“Instead of using grant money to fund climate change initiatives and political pet projects, we are using this money to protect American communities — especially places where people gather in prayer,” Noem said.
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