E-News for ACLU-AL Friends
SEPTEMBER 2011	FIGHTING FOR CIVIL LIBERTIES IN ALABAMA SINCE 1965
	Federal Court Ruling on Alabama’s Anti-Immigrant Law Undermines Fundamental American Values A federal judge this week blocked significant portions of HB 56, the nation’s most extreme anti-immigrant law, but left large parts in place, undermining the most fundamental American values of fairness and equality and devastating thousands of families across the state. Despite the fact that courts in other states have rebuked similar laws, the court’s decision means that law enforcement officers will be required to rely solely on “reasonable suspicion,” which is not defined in the law, to determine whom to ask for “papers” with the inevitable result that they will target people not based on their conduct but their skin color, accent, and the like. The court also refused to block the chilling effect the law will have on children's access to public schools by requiring school officials to verify the immigration status of children and their parents. “While we are relieved that parts of this harmful law are not going into effect, we are deeply troubled by the provisions that have been allowed to stand, including the parts of the law that will lead directly to law enforcement targeting people based on nothing other than their race and ethnicity,” said Olivia Turner, Executive Director of the ACLU of Alabama. “Such racial profiling presents a great danger to the fundamental principles of our Constitution and is an affront to the promise of racial equality.” ACLU Files Emergency Request to Block Alabama Anti-Immigrant Law Pending Appeal Following the court’s ruling, the ACLU and a coalition of civil rights groups appealed to the 11th Circuit Federal Court. The groups also requested that several key provisions of the law be temporarily blocked while the ruling is pending appeal.  If these key provisions are not blocked: Parents will be frightened to send their children to school because school officials will be required to verify the immigration status of children and their parents. (School systems are already reporting significant numbers of withdrawals.) Law enforcement agencies will become de facto immigration agencies and begin racially profiling people en masse or be subject to civil liability. Undocumented immigrants will be prohibited from entering into business transactions in the state, which could prevent them from receiving public utilities such as water and sewage services. (Two cities have already threatened this action.) Contracts between undocumented immigrants and others persons or entities will not be enforceable leading to the inability to rent a home, secure legal representation or get a loan, among many other things. Parts of the law that would have criminalized the solicitation of work and provisions that criminalized transporting undocumented friends, family and community members were blocked by the court order. Jail or Church? Between a ROC and a Hard Place When the ACLU calls for alternatives to incarceration, this isn’t what we have in mind. A new program in Bay Minette offers an unconstitutional choice for non-violent offenders. Operation Restore Our Community, or “ROC,” will give misdemeanor offenders a choice. They can both pay a fine and go to jail, or they can have their charges dismissed entirely if they go to church for a year. To have their cases dismissed, participating offenders must attend a church of their choosing every week for a year. They must also check in weekly both with the pastor of the church and the police department and answer questions about the services they attend. The government has no business promoting church attendance, let alone requiring it. Operation ROC violates the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and Section 3 of the Alabama Constitution, which states that “no one shall be compelled by law to attend any place of worship.” The ACLU supports alternatives to imprisonment, but they still have to be constitutional. There’s no get-out-of-jail-free card for that. The ACLU sent a letter to the City of Bay Minette, demanding an immediate end to Operation ROC. After receiving the ACLU’s letter, as well as drawing attention from all over the nation, the implementation of Operation ROC is being delayed. We will continue to monitor this situation. Thank you for your continued support of civil liberties in Alabama! Olivia Turner Executive Director, ACLU of Alabama Learn more about the ACLU of Alabama: Visit our website, follow us on Twitter, and like us on Facebook. 207 Montgomery Street, Suite 910, Montgomery, Alabama 36104 T: 334-262-0304  |  F: 334-269-5666  |  info@aclualabama.org www.aclualabama.org If you no longer wish to receive e-news updates, click here to unsubscribe.