AAJC Fights Arizona Immigration Law in Court 

PHOENIX— At a federal court hearing today, the Asian American Justice Centerand Asian Pacific American Legal Center, members of Asian American Center for Advancing Justice, along with a coalition of civil rights groups, argued that Arizona’s discriminatory new law, known as SB 1070, should be blocked pending a final court ruling on its constitutionality.

The law, scheduled to go into effect on the 29^th, requires police to demand “papers” from anyone they stop who they suspect are “unlawfully present” in the U.S. According to the coalition, the law would subject massive numbers of people— both citizens and non-citizens— to racial profiling, improper investigations and detention.

 

“SB 1070 is clearly unconstitutional; it’s also proof that our fragmented, out-dated immigration system is deeply flawed and in immediate need of a major overhaul,” said Karen K. Narasaki, AAJC’s president and executive director.

 

The Justice Department, in a separate hearing today, also asked the court to block SB 1070. In both cases, the court heard arguments on Arizona’s motion to dismiss.

 
APALC Litigation Director Julie Su said: “We are here today in Arizona to ensure that SB 1070 does not take effect next week, as this fundamentally unconstitutional law opens the door for law enforcement to discriminate against Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders and other people of color who look or sound ‘foreign.’  We have faith the court understands that immigration enforcement is solely the responsibility of the federal government, and that it will block this modern-day version of the Chinese Exclusion Act.”

 

In addition to AAJC and APALC, the civil rights coalition includes the ACLU, MALDEF, National Immigration Law Center (NILC), ACLU of Arizona, National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON) and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The law firm of Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP is acting as co-counsel in the case.
 
Omar Jadwat, staff attorney with the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project and Nina Perales, southwest regional counsel for MALDEF, argued the case on behalf of the civil rights groups.

 

In May, the coalition filed a lawsuit challenging the extreme law charging that it invites the racial profiling of people of color, violates the First Amendment and interferes with federal law. At today’s hearing, the civil rights coalition sought to halt implementation of the law while the case is litigated.

 

Organizations and attorneys on the case, Friendly House et al. v. Whiting et al., include:

•    ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project: Jadwat, Lucas Guttentag, Cecillia Wang, Tanaz Moghadam and Harini P. Raghupathi
•    MALDEF: Thomas A. Saenz, Perales, Cynthia Valenzuela Dixon, Victor Viramontes, Gladys Limón, Nicholás Espiritu and Ivan Espinoza-Madrigal
•    NILC: Tumlin, Linton Joaquin, Nora A. Preciado, Melissa S. Keaney, Vivek Mittal and Ghazal Tajmiri
•    ACLU Foundation of Arizona: Dan Pochoda and Annie Lai
•    APALC: Julie Su, Yungsuhn Park, Connie Choi and Carmina Ocampo
•    NDLON: Chris Newman
•    NAACP: Laura Blackburne
•    Munger Tolles & Olson LLP: Bradley S. Phillips, Paul J. Watford, Joseph J. Ybarra, Susan T. Boyd, Yuval Miller, Elisabeth J. Neubauer and Benjamin Maro
•    Roush, McCracken, Guerrero, Miller & Ortega: Daniel R. Ortega, Jr.

 

More information about the Arizona law is available at www.aajc.advancingjustice.org and www.apalc.advancingjustice.org, as well as the Web site of the other civil rights organizations.