FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

December 18, 2023

Contact: Nancy Treviño, media@presente.org

Texas and New Mexico Organizations Condemn Unconstitutional Anti-Immigrant Legislation, Doubling Down on Abbott’s Campaign Against Immigrants Communities

TEXAS – Governor Abbott signed today one of the country’s most extreme anti-immigrant laws, one that attacks every aspect of life for Texans. Senate Bill 4, conflicts with federal immigration law, immunizes law enforcement to conduct racial profiling and harassment, and gives state officials the unconstitutional ability to deport people without due process.

A group of legal advocacy, immigrant rights, and faith-based organizations across Texas and New Mexico are urging the Department of Justice to step in and immediately halt SB 4’s inherent discrimination from moving forward. The group is also calling on the Biden administration to sue the State of Texas to stop all efforts related to Operation Lone Star. Representatives from these organizations are available for interviews.

“SB 4 is a vile, unconstitutional attack on our communities and the values of justice, equality, and compassion we hold dear. We are in solidarity with the people of Texas who will be deeply impacted by this law if it goes into effect,” said Nancy Treviño, Director of Power at Presente.org. “This callous move will intensify racial profiling of all people of color across the state, undermining our fundamental civil and human rights. We condemn the signing of this bill into law and call on the Biden administration to challenge the legality of SB4 to stop it from being implemented.”

“Racial profiling is a pervasive problem that extends beyond the borders of any particular region in this country. People of color are daily singled out and targeted due to their skin color, accent, or religious affiliation. If SB 4 is implemented, countless U.S. citizens, mixed status households, and undocumented immigrants will be subjected to unlawful interrogations, searches, seizures, and arrests in violation of the Fourth Amendment based on how “foreign” they look and how they behave,” said Marisa Limón Garza Executive Director at Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center in El Paso, Texas, New Mexico and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico. “Let’s be clear: SB 4 is discriminatory and unconstitutional and must not take effect. Now is the time for our communities to come together and stop Texas from becoming an unbearably hostile environment for BIPOC communities. Organizations on the ground are ready to use every tool at their disposal to protect Texas families from SB 4’s inherent civil rights violations.”

“SB 4 is inhumane, immoral and unconstitutional. Its only aim is to criminalize people seeking safety at the border and instill fear in families throughout Texas,” said Dylan Corbett, Executive Director of the Hope Border Institute. “The day it goes into effect, it will disastrously make every Texan less safe by eroding fundamental community trust with law enforcement. The Biden administration needs to take immediate action to stop this and every action being taken by Governor Abbott to weaponize our border and cynically deploy our peace officers against the vulnerable.”

“The signing of Senate Bill 4 signifies not only what Texas politicians will do in an attempt to gain power over federal law – but that they don’t care who they imprison in the process. This bill would allow any police officer to become a Border Patrol or ICE agent and lead to criminalizing an estimated 80,000 migrants each year, most brown men,” said Roberto Lopez, Senior Advocacy Manager at the Texas Civil Rights Project. “Cruelly criminalizing people seeking safety by the thousands is not a real solution; we need meaningful investments to welcome people into our country with dignity.”

“Texas border communities have been forced to live in an environment of increased harassment by law enforcement for years. The passage of S.B. 4 (88-4), one of the most radical and anti-immigrant bills in the country, will undoubtedly lead to more rights violations and instill fear in Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities and all people of color throughout the state,” said Sarah Cruz, Policy and Advocacy Strategist for Immigrants’ Rights at the ACLU of Texas. “The bill violates international and federal law and interferes with the asylum process, potentially causing further trauma and distress to people seeking asylum, including families and children. Texans deserve to have their real needs met, not more cruelty that will further harm our communities.”

“With the passage of SB4, the State of Texas continues its assault on people of color. The law is unconstitutional, inhumane, and an overly broad encroachment of federal immigration authority. The State’s assault on migrants has resulted in far too many deaths. Countless people will lose their lives, end up in jail, and be deported before legal challenges invalidate the law,” said Melissa Lopez, Executive Director of Diocesian Migrant and Refugee Services. “The enforcement of this law will come at the expense of human dignity and human rights. The State of Texas is undertaking more and more dangerous tactics at every turn with no sign of letting up. We must protect anyone impacted or affected by SB4. We must ensure they have access to legal representation, understand their rights, and know how to assert them when confronted by law enforcement.”

“SB 4 creates yet another hierarchy of rights for people in Texas where Black and brown people are already racially profiled by Texan law enforcement,” said Tsion Gurmu, Legal Director at the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI). “SB 4, like Arizona’s “show us your papers’ legislation are unconstitutional deterrent initiatives used to create fear, break up community bonds and present the US as unwelcoming to Black and brown migrants. BAJI’s work demands that enforcement of migrants is inhumane; and SB 4 heightens the risk that Black Texans, no matter their immigration status, will be further criminalized. Expanding border enforcement into our cars, homes and neighborhoods is unconstitutional.”

“It’s infuriating that our great State of Texas, characterized by the diversity of its people, would subject our border communities to the consequences of xenophobic and racist bills like SB4,” said Ivonne Diaz, Senior Regional Program Coordinator with Texas Freedom Network’s Texas Rising. “The lawmakers and state leaders behind this bill have never been focused on protecting people, and their intention has always been to criminalize border and BIPOC communities regardless of status while bloating funding for border militarization and enlarging the prison system simultaneously. continue funding and enlarging the prison system whileWe must continue to protect each other and to demand that our legislators work for us, not against us.”

“People in New Mexico and Texas have long worked hand-in-hand to welcome people seeking safety and asylum in the U.S. and to support all our residents, both life-long and newly-arrived. Many New Mexicans rely upon our neighboring cities in Texas for access to specialized medical care, air travel, education and more,” said Leonardo Castañeda, Border and Immigration Policy Advocate at the ACLU of New Mexico. “We worry this unconstitutional assault upon our shared values of civil rights will deter people from seeking those essential services. We stand in solidarity with our neighbors in Texas and condemn the signing of SB4.”

“Texas has already approved billions of dollars for immigration enforcement to little effect and no end in sight, leading to a negative and disproportionate impact on border communities like El Paso. The passage of HB4/SB4 feeds an already alarming escalation of extremist anti-immigrant rhetoric in Texas,” said David Stout, El Paso County Commissioner. “We should advocate for federal immigration reform and embrace the trade and cultural exchange opportunities of the border. Instead, we have policy malpractice and reckless disregard from the governor and leaders in the Texas Legislature. I’m beyond disgusted by their willingness to lie and to hurt people because it’s good politics.”

“President Biden promised to restore the soul of the country. However, when it comes to protecting the rights of immigrants and communities of color, the President has fallen short. The Biden administration has an opportunity to correct course – it can take legal action to stop Operation Lone Star and can reject Congressional efforts to ram through extreme anti-immigrant proposals,” said Melina Roche, #WelcomeWithDignity Campaign Manager. “As a woman of color, I cannot stress enough how harmful this bill and proposals will be to our communities. As an American, I implore the President to take action. We must reject the extreme anti-immigrant agenda that is meant to harm communities of color.”

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Presente.org is the nation’s largest online Latinx organizing group — and the nation’s premier Latinx digital organizing hub — advancing social justice with technology, media, and culture. Presente.org’s mission is to advance Latinx power and create winning campaigns that amplify Latinx voices; expand the political imagination and traditional boundaries; and foster inspiration for freedom, equity, and justice.