Texas' anti-migrant "Show Me Your Papers" law still on ice after latest Supreme Court decision

Washington DC - The US Supreme Court has extended a pause on enforcement of an anti-migrant law in Texas as the case plays out.

Immigrants' rights activists protest Texas' Senate Bill 4 – currently on pause – in front of the state Capitol in Austin.
Immigrants' rights activists protest Texas' Senate Bill 4 – currently on pause – in front of the state Capitol in Austin.  © Brandon Bell / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

Justice Samuel Alito has extended his temporary freeze on Texas' Senate Bill 4 pending a "further order" from himself or the court.

Known as the "Show Me Your Papers" law, the Republican-priority legislation would empower state and local law enforcement to detain, arrest, and deport people suspected of crossing the Southern border into the US without documentation.

Immigrants' rights groups have said SB 4 will infringe on the international right to seek asylum and lead to greater militarization of borderlands communities.

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The Biden administration has slammed the measure as Texas lawmakers' attempt to intrude on immigration enforcement, which is the responsibility of the federal government.

SB 4 is facing a legal challenge from the Advocacy Center, American Gateways, and the County of El Paso, as well as the Biden administration's Justice Department. The cases have been consolidated into US vs. Texas, with a stay to a preliminary injunction currently under review by the Supreme Court.

Earlier this month, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the National Immigration Law Center announced they were filing an additional lawsuit against SB 4 on behalf of a local non-profit and four Texas residents.

Cover photo: Brandon Bell / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

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