The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit on Tuesday challenging Arizona’s recently enacted racial profiling law known as SB 1070. In taking this extraordinary action, the federal government has sent a clear message that it will not tolerate state laws that invite racial stereotyping and profiling and interfere with federal immigration priorities and policies.
The DOJ lawsuit was lauded by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other leading rights groups that had filed in May their own lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Arizona law.
Commenting on the DOJ lawsuit, Lucas Guttentag, Director of the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project said:
“We commend the Obama administration for taking this critical step to negate Arizona’s unconstitutional usurpation of federal authority and its invitation to racial profiling. The administration’s lawsuit is a cannon shot across the bow of other states that may be tempted to follow Arizona’s misguided approach. We will continue to aggressively pursue our legal challenge and welcome the Justice Department’s participation in the battle to preserve American values of fairness and equality.”
Linton Joaquin, General Counsel of the National Immigration Law Center (NILC) had this to say:
“States planning to follow in Arizona’s misguided footsteps should take note: the United States cannot and should not allow immigrants and communities of color to be targets of hateful racial profiling legislation that puts their civil liberties on the line. We are pleased to see that the government has exercised its legal right to protect the rights of those within its borders and ensure that federal issues remain squarely in the federal domain.”
Meanwhile, Benjamin Todd Jealous, President and Chief Executive Officer of the NAACP opined that, “In filing this lawsuit, the Obama administration has taken a strong and principled stand against Arizona’s discriminatory law. African-Americans have the misfortune of being all too familiar with the pernicious effects of racial profiling, and we welcome the addition of the administration to the broad spectrum of organizations already challenging this unconstitutional law. Laws that encourage discrimination have no place in this country. We are confident that the courts will prevent it from ever taking effect.”
