Kirk Franklin didn’t mince words on the red carpet when a reporter asked him about immigration enforcement and the church’s response. The gospel star said what many faith leaders have avoided expressing publicly, and silence at this moment is unacceptable.
Franklin, who has never fit neatly into the expectations of gospel music culture, spoke candidly with Baller Alert about what he sees as a moral gap between faith and action. While immigration enforcement has dominated national headlines, he noted that many church leaders and gospel artists have largely stayed silent. For Franklin, that silence feels out of step with the faith Christianity is supposed to represent.
He said the church should be more deliberate about speaking out: “I think that we should be very intentional about being very vocal about, first of all, Jesus’ momma and daddy were immigrants,” Franklin said. He cautioned against arrogance and pride, urging Christians to move beyond rhetoric and into action. “We need to get in the streets and to be able to save and love as many people as we can. And when I say ‘save,’ I’m not talking about just their souls. I’m talking about their lives.”
According to biblical accounts, Jesus’ parents fled to Egypt after King Herod ordered the killing of newborn boys in Bethlehem. The family left their home out of fear of persecution and lived in Egypt for a time before settling in Nazareth.
Franklin’s statement caught immediate attention online.
On social media, some users pushed back hard, criticizing Franklin for mixing faith, politics, and entertainment. A few dismissed his comments outright, while others said the timing was wrong or accused him of overstepping.
But there were also supporters backing him up. Some pointed to scripture, arguing that Franklin’s framing was historically and biblically accurate. Others suggested that the discomfort his comments said more about modern Christianity than about Franklin himself.
Franklin expanded his call beyond immigration alone. He also pointed to economic instability and technology’s rapid growth. Like AI, which has been threatening jobs and people’s livelihoods. In his view, compassion should be the church’s default posture toward all humanity, all the time.
