U.S. District Judge Roy Altman temporarily blocked part of Florida’s strict immigration law that made transporting undocumented people into the state a felony, reports Gary Fineout of Politico.
The legislation was backed and signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) in 2023. In his ruling, Judge Altman agreed that the state law is likely preempted by federal immigration laws. The legislation was challenged by lawyers of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida on behalf of farmworkers and family members of undocumented people in the state.
"This order recognizes the irreparable harm [the law] is causing immigrants, families, and their communities by unconstitutionally usurping the powers of the federal government to subject them to cruel criminal punishment," said Spencer Amdur, an attorney at the ACLU.
Separately, many businesses are advocating for work authorization for undocumented immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for years, reports Tami Luhby of CNN.
According to Rebbecca Shi, executive director of the American Business Immigration Coalition, more work permits would help businesses to tackle labor shortages and would bring stability to those who may already employ undocumented workers.
Amid the current immigration debate and negative rhetoric, Steve Obert, executive director of Indiana Dairy Producers, gives clarity around what will happen if they lose their immigrant workers: "You will absolutely cripple the dairy industry in this country if they send these workers back."
Welcome to Thursday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Clara Villatoro, the Forum’s senior strategic communications manager, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Jillian Clark, Dan Gordon and Ally Villarreal. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected].
MORE ON WORKERS —North Dakota hopes to attract immigrants who are highly educated and easy to get through the work authorization process. This goal hits at a core tension in the United States' conversation around immigration policy, reports Elisa Muyl for Dismal Science. While the economic growth of the U.S. relies on immigrants, recent rhetoric has made it more
difficult to openly support immigration, notes Muyl. Additionally, in Vermont, a recent Migrant Farmworker Research Roundtable discussed the perspectives of Vermont’s migrant farmworkers and ways to improve their wellbeing, reports Morning AgClips.
STATE LEGISLATION — A Louisianna bill similar to anti-immigrant measures in Iowa, Oklahoma and Texas was approved Wednesday and is expected to make it to the governor's desk soon, reports Sara Cline of the Associated Press. If signed, the legislation would empower local law enforcement officers to arrest individuals who entered the United States without authorization.
WELCOME — The act of welcoming newcomers should not be politicized, writes faith-based advocate Jason L. Miller in his piece for the U.S. Catholic. Miller criticizes groups spreading negative rhetoric toward migrants. "Some people seem intent on demonizing refugees who are escaping life-threatening situations that many of us would not even be able to imagine," he writes. Amid this harmful rhetoric, Miller finds hope in
initiatives to resettle refugees and communities choosing to welcome them.
‘POSITIVE IMPACT’ — The town of Sanford, Maine looks back on one year since over a hundred asylum seekers arrived, mostly from Central Africa, reports Ari Snider for Maine Public. While the city scrambled at first for resources to accommodate the newcomers, Jen Davie, a housing navigator with York County Community Action, continues to keep a hopeful outlook for what
this means for the community: "It's going to have a positive impact. I think that we have, in the last generation, lost a workforce."
