NHLA Condemns Executive Actions Calling for Border Wall and Punishing Localities and States Committed to Protecting Immigrant Communities

WASHINGTON- Today the President announced two executive orders related to immigration. NHLA strongly condemns today’s actions and calls on the White House to reconsider its current policies. Included in these actions is a directive to build a physical border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Any response to our nation’s broken immigration system that includes a costly effort to build an ineffective border wall, in addition to what currently exists, is incredibly misguided and shows a failure to appreciate the current situation on the Southern border. Along with the construction of a wall, the “Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements” executive order, directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to allocate resources to increase the number of immigrant detention centers and to expand the number of individuals subject to detention. In addition, the President calls for an end to the so-called “catch and release” policy, which releases low-priority immigrants awaiting adjudications, in favor of detaining immigrants, which would include asylum seeking families and children, along with increasing the use of expedited removal proceedings. These directives threaten the civil and due process rights of immigrants, and further entangle DHS with the private prison industry by which private companies profit from the detention of individuals.

In addition, the executive order “Enhancing Public Safety In the Interior of the United States,” includes directives to target the funding of states and localities that have community trust policies in place, or so-called “sanctuary cities,” that limit interaction between local law enforcement and federal immigration officials, as well as continuing the flawed Secure Communities program. The President’s orders will increase resources for Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, despite a lack of accountability and training available to ensure they are operating effectively and fully within the law. NHLA has grave concerns about efforts to increase interior enforcement – these actions are known to lead to racial profiling, target communities of color, and will ultimately make our communities less safe. In addition, NHLA warns against enhancing federal immigration resources by increase the number of immigration officials, as these entities have largely operated without oversight.

“We stand in solidarity with families, children, the immigrant community, the Muslim community, refugees and all affected by the President's negative executive action to build a wall and sanction sanctuary cities. Trump's anti-immigrant, anti-Latino, anti-Muslim campaign threats are becoming a terrifying reality. This is bad for the economy, for our democracy, and for our nation. We are particularly concerned about the impact it is having on our families, children, and our communities, including the psychological impact and the real victimization, rise in hate crimes, bullying and harassment. We will do all that is in our power and all that is necessary to safeguard the most fundamental rights in our country. Such actions include protecting vulnerable communities, immigrants, children and people who are fleeing violence and persecution. The president claims that he aims to unify our country. If he is sincere, he should be focused on common sense approach on immigration, providing a safe environment for refugees and building bridges, not walls," said Hector E. Sanchez, NHLA Chair and Executive Director of the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement.

“Having triggered his own previous bankruptcies through construction projects that were excessively costly and whose benefits were vastly overestimated by him, Donald Trump seems intent on doing the same to the federal government through a ridiculous border Wall Mahal,” said Thomas A. Saenz, NHLA Vice Chair and MALDEF President and General Counsel. “Communities will not be intimidated by this waste of money on a wall or by threats to sanction cities and communities that recognize the tremendous value that immigrants, including those blocked by unjust laws from obtaining legal status, contribute to our nation.”

“Instead of uniting our communities and nation, President Trump has decided to spend his first week in office fanning the flames of xenophobia, fear and division through his statements and executive actions. What the new administration has offered to date is a dark vision for America that will make our nation less safe, less hopeful and less prosperous. Make no mistake about it, these actions will be met with active, emphatic and relentless resistance in every corner of our nation,” said Jose Calderon, Co-Chair of NHLA’s Immigration Committee and President of the Hispanic Federation.

“Candidate Trump slandered Mexican immigrants as criminals, questioned the fairness of a distinguished U.S.-born judge based solely on his Mexican heritage, and constantly repeated debunked falsehoods on immigration. Unfortunately, President Trump’s announcement today shows his intention to stay on this path. While the president said that there is no room for prejudice in patriotism, his actions today are all about building a wall of intolerance,” said Murguía. “As we unite with allies to protect and defend vulnerable communities, we will ensure that Latino voters are aware of who contributed to unleashing these extreme measures, as well as who sat idly by our community’s rights were trampled,” stated Janet Murguía, Co-Chair NHLA’s Economic Empowerment and Labor Committee, President and CEO of the National Council of La Raza.

“President Trump’s executive orders ignore the complexities of immigration issues, as they undermine the relationship between law enforcement and the immigrant community; alienate one of our closest allies; authorize wasteful government spending; and ignore the environmental and cultural implications that the wall's construction will have on local communities. LULAC will remain vigilant and continue to fight against any attempts to demonize and scapegoat the immigrant community,” said Brent Wilkes, NHLA’s Treasurer and National Executive Director of LULAC.

“The policies announced today are extremist, ineffective, expensive and are rooted in racist and xenophobic rhetoric. Not only are these orders in complete dissonance with our country's core values, but they are inadequate to address the realities of a broken immigration system. With today's announcement, this administration has made its intent clear: to terrorize and demonize immigrant families across communities. As the current President seeks to carry out his hateful agenda, we will continue to speak out and uphold the most basic promise: that the health and dignity of women and families is non-negotiable,” said Jessica González-Rojas, Executive Director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health (NLIRH) and Co-Chair of the Latina Task Force.

“President Trump’s harsh rhetoric and actions regarding immigrants are instilling fear in many farmworkers and their families, and contravene our history as a nation of immigrants. The large majority of the people who harvest our fruits and vegetables and tend our livestock are immigrants, and many are undocumented workers. Most farmworkers have held these low-paid, difficult jobs for many years. They have children. They help agricultural business owners prosper. Immigrant farmworkers help ensure that we have fresh, healthy food. These attacks on immigration and immigrants must be opposed”, said Bruce Goldstein, Co-Chair of NHLA’s Economic Empowerment and Security Committee and President of Farmworker Justice.

"The U.S.-Mexico Foundation emphatically rejects Donald Trump’s intentions to separate families and promote incarceration of immigrant civilians. We demand President Trump to act in alignment with International Human Rights Laws, to size the contribution of immigrant families to the strength of the US economy and to stop the abuse of for-profit and unnecessary prisons. We also ask the President to approach negotiations with our neighboring countries with a sense of mutual respect and co-responsibility,” said Rebecca Vargas, President and CEO of U.S.-Mexico Foundation.

“IUPLR is on record supporting efforts to incorporate our undocumented students. We have invested in their education and they are now contributing to our society. We support efforts to legalize them and their families who have raised them to be hard working and responsible individuals. Family reunification is the cornerstone of a sound and productive immigration policy that promotes stability in families and communities,” said Maria Torres, NHLA Education Committee Member and Executive Director of Inter-University Program for Latino Research.

“True to his divisive campaign promises, the President has scapegoated the Hispanic immigrant community for the problems he perceives to be plaguing the United States. Rather than pursue measured, reasonable reform, he has played on the fears of the American public to demonize immigrants and proposed fiscally and morally irresponsible measures. The Hispanic community will stand united in opposing these measures in favor of responsible action,” said Amy Hinojosa, NHLA Latina Task Force Member and President and CEO of MANA, A National Latina Organization.

“The President's actions on immigration and in particular, targeting sanctuary cities, will leave victims and their children at risk for further exploitation and leave law enforcement agencies around the country without a necessary tool to keep communities safe. We must treat immigrants and refugees with compassion, protection, dignity, and the human rights everyone deserves,” said Patricia Tototzintle, NHLA Immigration Committee Member and Chief Executive Officer of Casa de Esperanza.

“The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) urges President Trump to maintain the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) provisions and support Congressional legislative initiatives to set them into law and the passage of the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act. Keeping DACA would protect over 752 thousand young immigrants who have been raised in this nation and are excelling as exemplary Americans, but need the relief that the DREAM Act would afford them to be more fully integrated as contributing members of our society. This would benefit America’s workforce as many of them are college bound, in college, or college educated. It is also essential to prevent the breakup of families. Preserving DACA and passing the DREAM Act would be good for America and would be a wise down payment on broader immigration reform,” said Dr. Antonio Flores, Co-Chair of NHLA’s Education Committee and President and CEO of Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU).

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The National Hispanic Leadership Agenda is composed of 40 of the leading national and regional Latino civil rights and public policy organizations and other elected officials, and prominent Latinos Americans. NHLA coalition members represent the diversity of the Latino community – Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, and other Latino Americans. NHLA’s mission calls for unity among Latinos around the country to provide the Latino community with greater visibility and a clearer, stronger influence in our country’s affairs. NHLA brings together Latino leaders to establish policy priorities that address, and raise public awareness of, the major issues affecting the Latino community and the nation as a whole. For more information, please visit: www.nationalhispanicleadership.org.

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Alianza Americas | American GI Forum | ASPIRA Association, Inc. | Avance | Casa de Esperanza: National Latin@ Network | Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute | Cuban American National Council | Farmworker Justice | Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities | Hispanic Federation | Hispanic National Bar Association | Inter-University Program for Latino Research | Labor Council for Latin American Advancement | Latino Justice PRLDEF | League of United Latin American Citizens | MANA, A National Latina Organization | Mexican American Legal Defense & Educational Fund | NALEO Educational Fund | National Association of Hispanic Federal Executives | National Association of Hispanic Publications | National Association of Latino Independent Producers | National Conference of Puerto Rican Women, Inc. | National Council of La Raza | National Hispana Leadership Institute | National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators | National Hispanic Council on Aging | National Hispanic Environmental Council | National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts | National Hispanic Media Coalition | National Hispanic Medical Association | National Institute for Latino Policy | National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health | National Puerto Rican Coalition, Inc. | Presente.org | SER – Jobs for Progress National, Inc. | Southwest Voter Registration Education Project | United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce | United States Hispanic Leadership Institute | United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce | U.S.-Mexico Foundation