ACLU and Civil Rights Coalition File Lawsuit Against South Carolina’s Anti-Immigrant Law

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Source: ACLU

The American Civil Liberties Union and a coalition of civil rights groups today filed a lawsuit against South Carolina’s anti-immigrant law, charging it is unconstitutional, invites racial profiling, and interferes with federal law.

Today’s complaint was filed two weeks after a similar anti-immigrant law went into effect in Alabama, where families have been afraid to leave their homes and individuals have been stopped and questioned about their immigration status.

The lawsuit charges that the law, SB 20, subjects South Carolinians – including U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents – to unlawful search and seizure and interferes with federal power and authority over immigration matters. The law requires police to demand “papers” demonstrating citizenship or immigration status during traffic stops when they have “reasonable suspicion” that a person lacks immigration status and criminalizes South Carolinians for everyday interactions with undocumented individuals, such as driving someone to church, or renting a room to a friend.

“This lawsuit is the latest in our ongoing fight against these unconstitutional laws. In recent days, we have seen the destructive results of a similar law in Alabama, and the people of South Carolina should not face the same fate,” said Andre Segura, staff attorney with the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project. “This law must be blocked, as it tramples our American values, interferes with federal laws and risks turning South Carolina into a police state.”

Read more: http://www.aclu.org/immigrants-rights/aclu-and-civil-rights-coalition-file-lawsuit-against-south-carolinas-anti