In case you missed it, team – a federal court has
temporarily blocked Oklahoma’s HB 4156 – a harmful and far-reaching law that would have had devastating consequences
for Oklahoma’s immigrant communities.

The law was set to take effect July 1, but the court issued a preliminary
injunction that puts the law on hold as the case is litigated.

This decision is a victory and testament to the resilience of the Oklahoma
immigrant community , who stood up against one of the most anti-immigrant laws ever passed in the
state.

The federal courts have been clear that HB 4156, like similar laws in Texas and
Iowa, is unconstitutional. We are relieved with this decision to block its
implementation and will continue fighting for all immigrant communities that
call Oklahoma home.

Stay tuned for more updates,

Nicholas Espíritu
Deputy Legal Director
National Immigration Law Center

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Friend,

We just filed a lawsuit challenging a new Oklahoma law, HB 4156, which would
have devastating consequences for people across the state.

This far-reaching legislation, which is set to go into effect on July 1, 2024,
seeks to usurp federal authority and put control of our immigration system into
Oklahoma’s hands. Under HB 4156, entire categories of immigrants would be barred from entering
the state, or could be ordered to leave, even people who are pursuing asylum or
other lawful immigration status.

Along with the American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Oklahoma, and Rivas &
Associates, we represent Padres Unidos de Tulsa and an Oklahoma resident who
came to the United States nearly 20 years ago as a one-year-old. She has resided
in the state ever since and her entire family — including her parents,
grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and U.S.-citizen siblings — all live
nearby. She could be prosecuted and removed from Oklahoma under this new law and
separated from her entire family and the only place she has called home.

If these tactics sound familiar to you, it’s because Oklahoma is taking a page
from Texas’ anti-immigrant playbook. A little over two months ago, we sued Texas
over S.B. 4, a law which would recklessly empower state and local law
enforcement to arrest, detain, and potentially deport certain immigrants.

We warned that S.B. 4 would set a dangerous precedent for other states and
invite widespread racial profiling of Black and Brown communities across Texas —
both immigrants and U.S. citizens alike. As a result of a separate lawsuit, a
district court in Texas blocked S.B. 4 from taking effect, but Texas appealed
that ruling to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and a decision is pending. Now, our fight continues in Oklahoma.

No matter where you live in the United States, no one should be forced to choose
between abandoning their home and facing nonsensical criminal sanctions. This
law would be disastrous for all Oklahomans.

Thank you for being a part of this fight with us and for standing alongside
people and communities across Texas and Oklahoma, like our plaintiffs, whose
lives and homes are here.

More soon,

Nicholas Espíritu
Deputy Legal Director
National Immigration Law Center



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