Washington, DC
July 8th, 2011
STATEMENT ON THE LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST HB 56 IN ALABAMA
The Embassy of Mexico welcomes the lawsuit filed in a Federal District Court today by several organizations against HB 56, a bill recently approved in the state of Alabama.
On June 9th, upon the enactment of this law, the Government of Mexico voiced its deep concern through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, after its Embassy in Washington and its Consulate General in Atlanta had criticized the initiative and expressed dismay about its content after its approval in the Alabama Legislature.
The Government of Mexico has repeatedly underscored that certain provisions of this law could adversely affect the fundamental civil rights of Mexican nationals living or visiting Alabama, further criminalize immigrants, and potentially lead to the selective application of the law.
Among others, HB 56 contains provisions that require elementary and secondary schools to determine the immigration status of children and their parents upon enrollment as criteria to refer them to certain school programs, regardless of their actual learning needs or abilities thus creating a subclass of students singled out on the sole basis of national origin and ethnicity. This is extremely worrisome as it could likely lead to potential discrimination of Mexican students, including those who are actually U.S. citizens of Mexican descent.
The Embassy of Mexico and its consular network in the United States will continue to promote a clear understanding of the positive contributions our nationals make to the economic prosperity and vitality of the US and to the communities in which they live in this country, and will spare no effort to protect their fundamental rights, regardless of their immigration status.