“Many people today feel powerless in the face of violence, injustice, and social unrest,” Archbishop Paul Coakley, president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, said in an open letter.

Coakley said the recent killings of two people in Minneapolis by federal immigration agents are “tragic examples of the violence that represent failures in our society to respect the dignity of every human life.”

“We mourn this loss of life and deplore the indifference and injustice it represents,” he said.

“The current climate of fear and polarisation, which thrives when human dignity is disregarded, does not meet the standard set by Christ in the Gospel,” Coakley added.

He urged fellow bishops, priests and Catholic faithful in the United States to join a “holy hour for peace” in the coming days.

“Let us pray for reconciliation where there is division, for justice where there are violations of fundamental rights, and for consolation for all who feel overwhelmed by fear or loss,” Coakley said.

Coakley’s appeal comes after a leading US Catholic cardinal strongly condemned President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown and called for defunding the “lawless” federal agency that is carrying it out.

“If we are serious about putting our faith in action, we need to say ‘no,’ each one of us,” Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark, New Jersey, a top ally of Pope Leo XIV, said in an online prayer service.

Tobin urged Americans to contact their members of Congress and tell them to vote against renewed funding for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.

The American-born Leo has been a vocal critic of Trump’s immigration policies since being elected pontiff in May, calling the treatment of migrants “extremely disrespectful.”