The move follows an emergency order from a federal judge. This executive order in particular stops indiscriminate immigration stops and arrests in seven California counties, including Los Angeles and Ventura. The decision comes in response to a federal lawsuit from immigrant advocacy organizations opposed to the changes. They claim that the Trump administration’s actions were a part of an official policy to racially discriminate against people living in Southern California.
Judge Maame E. Frimpong’s order aims to protect individuals from being stopped or arrested solely on the basis of their race, ethnicity, or language. The case is brought on behalf of the three detained immigrants and one U.S. citizen. Another of the residents alleges that immigration agents detained them despite producing identification.
The order expressly discourages the federal government from using race or ethnicity as basis for reasonable suspicion. The ruling directly tackles the use of language. It spells out unambiguously that speaking either Spanish or English with an accent can’t be used as a basis for suspicion. Specifically, the judge ruled that presence at certain locations like a tow yard or car wash are insufficient justifications for targeted intervention of immigration enforcement. Further, a person’s employment cannot be a justification for such treatment either.
Today’s order is just an interim measure as the federal court case proceeds through the judicial process. The plaintiffs argue that the government’s actions violate the Fourth and Fifth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, which protect against unreasonable searches and ensure due process.
Here, too, immigrant advocates have raised alarm against what they claim to be a practice of racial profiling by immigration officers. “Migrant rights advocates,” the group of Harvard students write, “its agents have been responsible for racially profiling individuals based on their race and ethnicity.
“Broad stereotypes based on race or ethnicity have no place in our immigration system,” – American Civil Liberties Union.
Mohammad Tajsar is the attorney for the advocacy organization that joined in the lawsuit. He recounted a shocking story of a Latino worker who was brutally attacked just for being Latino.
“He was physically assaulted … for no other reason than he was Latino and working at a tow yard in a predominantly Latin American neighborhood,” – Mohammad Tajsar.
On May 29, 2023, Judge Frimpong issued an emergency order that greatly expands the rights of detainees in the Hawkins County Detention Center. It stopped federal authorities from denying attorney access at the Los Angeles immigration detention boom gate.