ACLU-NM Regional Center for Border Rights Applauds Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill
Some civil liberties concerns remain in bill however, says ACLU.
April 17, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: (212) 549-2666; media@aclu.org
LAS CRUCES, NM—Today, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico Regional Center for Border Rights (RCBR) applauded the new comprehensive immigration reform proposal that the U.S. Senate introduced early this morning. The new bill provides a pathway to citizenship for aspiring Americans already inside our country.
“The immigration reform bill has the potential to be a historic advance for civil rights and liberties of immigrants and all Americans,” said ACLU of New Mexico RCBR Director Vicki Gaubeca. “This bill would allow millions of aspiring Americans to step forward and share equally in all the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.”
The ACLU of New Mexico RCBR is, however, concerned about several problematic aspects of the immigration reform bill:
“The new immigration reform bill needlessly expands wasteful border spending, even though our communities along the border are safe, net migration from Mexico is at zero, and prior border security benchmarks stipulated by Congress have already been met,” said Gaubeca. “Also, the mandate to use job-killing, costly and privacy-invasive employment verification (E-verify) raises significant civil liberties concerns. The ACLU will continue to fight every step of the way to ensure that we do not trade away fundamental freedoms as we work to remove needless obstacles in the immigration process. Moving forward we will also work to guarantee adequate oversight and accountability of border enforcement efforts.”
Stay informed
Every month, you'll receive regular roundups of the most important civil rights and civil liberties developments. Remember: a well-informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny.
By completing this form, I agree to receive occasional emails per the terms of the ACLU’s privacy policy.
The latest in Smart Justice
ACLU's Vision
The American Civil Liberties Union is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States of America.
Learn More About Smart Justice
The ACLU Campaign for Smart Justice is an unprecedented, multiyear effort to reduce the U.S. jail and prison population by 50% and to challenge racism in the criminal legal system.