Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott is set to sign a bill (SB4) that will make the illegal entry of immigrants into Texas a state crime and give authorities the power to arrest and remove “violating immigrants” to Mexico.
The announcement of the new law has generated waves of fear throughout the Latino community in Texas – which represents 40% of the state’s population.
Civil rights organizations and immigrant advocacy groups, including the ACLU of Texas, are calling the measure “anti-immigrant” and warning that the powers granted to authorities will lead to racial discrimination against Latinos, not just at the border, but throughout the state.
The ACLU of Texas condemned the passage of the bill, calling it “some of the most radical anti-immigration legislation ever passed by any state” and threatened to sue Abbott if he signs SB4.
A group of 30 former immigration judges, who were appointed and served under both Republican and Democratic administrations, opposed the bill and stated that it is illegal.
“Immigration is clearly a federal function,” the former judges stated in a press release. “The proposed legislation in Texas, which would allow a state judge to issue a removal order, is not legal.”
The bill has another problem: Mexico
The Mexican government responded to the Texas Legislature’s approval of the Bill by stating that it “categorically rejects” Texas’s proposal to arrest and deport immigrants to Mexico.
“The Government of Mexico reiterates its rejection of any measure that contemplates the involuntary return of migrants without respect for due process,” states the communication from Mexico’s Secretary of Foreign Relations.
It added that Mexico “recognizes the sovereign right of any country to decide the public policies that should be implemented in its territory,” but Mexico also has the right to defend the approximately 10 million people of Mexican origin in Texas and “establish its own immigration policy in its territory.”
“The Government of Mexico categorically rejects any measure that allows state or local authorities to detain and return nationals or foreigners to Mexican territory,” the statement asserts.
The bill makes it a state misdemeanor to illegally cross the border from Mexico into Texas. The charge can be elevated to a felony if the immigrant is accused of other crimes or refuses to comply with a judge’s order to return to Mexico. The maximum penalty for a misdemeanor charge is one year in prison; for a felony, the penalty is two to 20 years in prison.
Source: CNN and The Texas Tribune