Alabama’s law on illegal immigration has been called the harshest in the country, and the state has finally agreed to a settlement proposed by the American Civil Liberties Union on Tuesday. The agreement would block parts of the law including the demand that public schools gather information on students’ immigration status. Police will also not be permitted to arrest someone just to check their immigration status.
Several civil rights groups were involved in the lawsuit against the Act, called HB 56. Kristi Graunke, attorney for the Southern Poverty Law Center stated: “We warned the legislature when they were debating HB 56 that if they passed this draconian law, we would sue in court and win. That we have done. Now it is time for our state lawmakers to repeal the remnants of HB 56 and for our congressional delegation to support meaningful immigration reform that will fix our broken system.”
Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange commented in a written statement that his office defended the act in court, but that certain parts of law needed to go. “The courts have upheld most of the Act but have also made clear that some provisions are invalid. We have a duty to follow the law as set forth by the courts,” Strange said. “The filings made today inform the trial court of which claims must be dismissed and which provisions of our law cannot be enforced because of the Supreme Court’s and Eleventh Circuit’s rulings. It is up to Washington to fulfill its responsibility to enforce the country’s immigration laws.”
