A coalition of immigrants’ rights organizations has condemned recently introduced Senate Bill 101 that would increase immigration regulations in North Carolina.
The bill, if passed, would require that individuals subject to a detainer request to be held for 48 hours, which means law enforcement officials would be obligated to detain those suspected of being undocumented. It would also require local sheriff's offices to report to a legislative committee about their immigration enforcement.
Sheriffs who willfully avoid making a claim to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and don’t comply with procedures outlined in the bill would face a Class I misdemeanor.
“We condemn this bill because we know it’s going to harm our communities,” Veronica Aguilar, communications coordinator at El Pueblo, said. “It’s going to place our communities at risk. It’s placing our public health and safety at risk during a pandemic. It’s spreading fear within our immigrant communities.”
El Pueblo is a nonprofit based in Raleigh that works with the Latinx community and other marginalized communities.
The bill is a copycat version of House Bill 370, which was introduced in 2019. Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed the bill claiming that it was “simply about scoring partisan political points and using fear to divide North Carolina.”
The coalition of immigrants’ rights organizations, which includes El Pueblo and the ACLU of North Carolina, initially formed to fight House Bill 370.
“We saw it as a threat and organizations across the state who advocate for immigrants came together and organized in opposition to this bill,” Aguilar said.
The coalition cited several concerns with potential consequences of Senate Bill 101. Stefanía Arteaga, acting regional immigrants’ rights strategist for the ACLU of North Carolina, said the bill would create significant mistrust in the immigrant community.
