Miami (BLAZETRENDS).- Several groups in favor of civil rights filed a lawsuit against the immigration law SB1718 of Florida (USA), considering that it is “unconstitutional, xenophobic” and “criminalizes” the immigrant community in a state where “a fifth of the population was born abroad”.
The lawsuit, brought by the Southern Poverty Law Center, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and its Florida chapter, Americans for Immigrant Justice and the American Immigration Council, argues that SB1718 poses “a threat to the rights and the welfare of every individual in the state”, not just for immigrants, and is “discriminatory”.
This “harmful law” is designed to “inflict cruelty” on the immigrant community, is “unconstitutional, and undermines our democracy,” Paul R. Chavez, senior supervising attorney for Southern Poverty Law’s Immigrant Justice Project, said in a statement today. .
The lawsuit centers on provisions of Section 10 of the law, which criminalize the transportation of people to Florida who may have entered the United States illegally without federal inspection. The complaint says it’s unconstitutional for a state to unilaterally regulate federal immigration, subject people to punishment without warning, and use such a vague term as “inspection.”
The lawsuit against the immigration law SB1718
The case was brought against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis; State Attorney General Ashley Moody; Florida State’s Attorney Nicholas B. Cox and the Attorneys General of Florida’s 20 Judicial Circuits, on behalf of the Florida Farm Workers Association and various affected individuals, including U.S. citizens and undocumented drivers and passengers who habitually travel to and from Florida.
The complainant organizations further maintain that a series of sections of SB1718 harm Florida immigrants and their families, and “seeks to attack and intimidate immigrant families in all facets of their lives.”
Thus, the aforementioned law, which entered into force on July 1, “inhibits and intimidates Florida immigrants who seek medical attention”, expands the requirements of E-Verify (system to verify employee eligibility) and the sanctions to the companies.
Similarly, the law prohibits local government from funding new community ID cards and invalidates certain driver’s licenses from states such as Connecticut, Vermont, Delaware and Hawaii.
This legislation “is not the solution to any problem,” but “an attempt to scapegoat and terrorize vulnerable families and workers who are already burdened by the difficulty of the federal immigration process,” denounced Amien Kacou. , attorney for the ACLU of Florida.
“Our challenge is to uphold the Constitution and protect our communities from the growing threat of discrimination posed by this new Florida law,” Kacou said.
The main criticisms
In the 35-page document, civil rights organizations insist that the aforementioned law “unconstitutionally criminalizes the act of transporting a broad category of immigrants to Florida.”
A category that “puts thousands of Floridians and out-of-state residents, both citizens and noncitizens, at risk of being arrested, charged, and prosecuted” for the “felony” of transporting people to Florida under “vaguely defined” terminology. .
So, the lawsuit adds, “families may not be able to visit across state lines,” “parents who live near the state line may not be able to take their children to medical appointments or soccer games,” or co-workers cannot drive each other to work.
“Section 10 (of SB1718) inflicts enormous damage on people’s ability to carry out their daily lives,” the lawsuit alerts.