WASHINGTON, June 26, 2012 – NAFSA: Association of International Educators applauds yesterday’s Supreme Court decision to strike down three of four key elements of SB 1070, the controversial anti-immigrant law passed by the state of Arizona in 2010. NAFSA has been a vocal opponent of the law, urging the U.S. Department of Justice to vigorously pursue legal challenges to state-level anti-immigrant laws, calling on other states to refrain from enacting similar laws, and urging the U.S. Congress to move expeditiously to enact comprehensive immigration reform.

The Court struck down sections of the Arizona law that: made it a crime to be illegally present in the state; made it a crime for undocumented individuals to seek employment; and allowed state and local law enforcement to arrest without warrant individuals suspected of being illegally present.

Regrettably, the Court let stand one controversial section of the law, saying that lower courts had failed to provide sufficient interpretation to overturn it, and providing guidance in the fair and constitutional application of the provision. That section, known as the “papers, please” provision, requires state and local law enforcement officials to determine the immigration status of individuals during a lawful stop or arrest if they have a "reasonable suspicion" that the person may be illegally present. The provision has prompted widespread concern that it could lead to racial profiling. NAFSA hopes and expects that this provision will meet further legal challenges.

The Court’s ruling upheld precedent, forcefully asserting the supremacy of the federal government in the establishment of immigration law and affirming prior decisions that rejected the criminalization by states of immigration violations. In doing so, the court sent a strong message to other states considering similar laws. The court emphasized the complex nature of immigration policy, emphasizing the need for discretion in its application: “Federal governance of immigration and alien status is extensive and complex… Discretion in the enforcement of immigration law embraces immediate human concerns.” Further, the court reaffirmed the role of immigration law in attracting foreigners to the United States and in sending the right message to the world about how accepting the country is of newcomers and visitors: “Immigration policy shapes the destiny of the Nation.”  

NAFSA welcomes the court’s affirmation that immigration law is a federal prerogative and a matter requiring great care in its creation and application. We agree that the government’s exercise of its power to regulate immigration should be guided, as the court wrote, by “searching, thoughtful, rational civic discourse.” We urge the federal government to act urgently to enact comprehensive immigration reform based in fairness, facts, and a shared future.