Latinos United for Immigration Reform

Aug 5, 2015 LATINO LEADERS CALL ON SENATORS TO REJECT ANTI-IMMIGRANT BILL

PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE DISTRIBUTION
August 5, 2015

LATINO LEADERS CALL ON SENATORS TO REJECT ANTI-IMMIGRANT BILL
S. 1814 scapegoats Latino immigrants for political gain and fails to promote public safety

Washington, D.C. –The National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA), a coalition of 40 of the nation’s preeminent Latino advocacy organizations, wrote to members of the Senate Judiciary Committee urging them to oppose S. 1814, the “Stop Sanctuary Cities Act” and continued efforts to make sweeping generalizations about Latino immigrants for political gain. S. 1814 would withhold federal grants from states and cities that responsibly limit certain interactions with the Department of Homeland Security in order to build community trust and encourage immigrant communities to cooperate with local law enforcement in combatting crime.

NHLA will consider votes on this and similar legislation for inclusion in future NHLA congressional scorecards evaluating Senators’ support for the Latino community.

“This enforcement-only piecemeal bill is built on the same lies that Donald Trump has espoused about Latino immigrants being criminals. The truth is that immigrants are less likely to be involved in crime than native-born Americans and that S. 1814 will not improve public safety,” said Hector Sanchez, NHLA Chair and Executive Director of the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement. “Rather than waste time on this bill, the Senate Judiciary Committee should be working on serious immigration reform.”

"This proposed legislation only serves to satisfy the anti-immigrant impulses of certain politicians at the expense of the Latino community," said Jose Calderon, President of the Hispanic Federation and Co-Chair of NHLA's Immigration Committee. "If implemented, this bill would end up wasting law enforcement resources on locking up and deporting individuals for minor non-violent offenses, tearing families apart, and destroying necessary trust between local law enforcement and immigrant communities."

“Four years ago, Congress did nothing after six states adopted laws that encroached on federal authority and would have required police to profile Latinos and immigrants everywhere,” stated Thomas A. Saenz, NHLA Vice Chair and MALDEF President and General Counsel. “Now, in response to isolated instances and with the urging of the nativist fringe, certain legislators want to leap in, without any regard for community safety, to punish cities that follow progressive policies of immigrant integration and that recognize the significant harm from cooperating in the deportation of the fathers and mothers of citizen children. The Senate should reject this invitation to move from ‘do nothing’ to ‘Know Nothing’ policy strategies.”

NHLA will consider votes on this and similar legislation for inclusion in its congressional scorecard.

The full text of the letter is below and link:

August 5, 2015

Senate Committee on the Judiciary
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC 20515

Re: NHLA Opposition to S. 1814, Stop Sanctuary Cities Act

Dear Senator:

We write on behalf of the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA), a coalition of 40 leading national Latino nonpartisan civil rights and advocacy organizations, to strongly urge you to vote against S. 1814, Stop Sanctuary Cities Act.

S. 1814, would withhold federal law enforcement funding for states and local jurisdictions, characterized as “sanctuary cities,” that limit interaction between federal immigration agencies and local law enforcement agencies in order to build trust in the community and promote local public safety goals. NHLA recommends a “no” vote on S. 1814, the Stop Sanctuary Cities Act and any similar legislation, including amendments. NHLA will closely monitor any votes on them for inclusion in future NHLA scorecards evaluating Member support for the Latino community.

Such legislation to mandate that states and localities comply with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer requests, despite their unconstitutionality, is a misguided response to the tragic murder of an innocent woman in San Francisco. It is based on sweeping generalizations about all immigrants based on the actions of one individual, thus scapegoating immigrants, and in particular Latino immigrants. It is unacceptable when a presidential contender such as Donald Trump makes such generalizations in campaigning and equally unacceptable when Members of Congress do so in legislating. The facts speak for themselves: numerous studies have shown that immigrants are less likely to be incarcerated than native-born Americans, less likely to commit crimes, and less likely to be repeat offenders.

Legislating based on scoring political points and ignoring the underlying problems of our immigration and criminal justice systems is not the solution, and fails to make our communities safer. The federal government has implemented harsh immigration removal policies in the recent past, including unconstitutional detainer requests, that failed to promote public safety, instead tearing families apart by deporting individuals for minor nonviolent offenses and creating fear of authorities that undermined the cooperation that local law enforcement needs in order to protect the public.

In order to effectively address problems with our broken immigration system, Congress should resume the effort started in the 113th Congress to enact comprehensive immigration reform legislation.

We appreciate your attention to our concerns. Please contact NHLA through Andrea Senteno, of MALDEF, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 202-572-0467 with any questions regarding this letter. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,
Thomas A. Saenz
MALDEF, President and General Counsel
NHLA Immigration Committee Co-Chair

Jose Calderón
Hispanic Federation, President
NHLA Immigration Committee Co-Chair

###

Established in 1991, the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA) brings together Hispanic 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. In 2013, NHLA launched the Latinos United for Immigration Reform campaign. For more information, please visit www.nationalhispanicleadership.org and LatinosUnited.org and follow @NHLAgenda.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

| Teresa Acuña | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. | (202) 508-6917 |
| Estuardo Rodriguez | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. | (202)463-4806 |

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