Young Center Opposes the implementation of SB4, the Texas “Show Me Your Papers” Law

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Tuesday, March 19, 2024 

Media Contact: Erika Andiola | eandiola@theyoungcenter.org  

Brownsville, Texas— Today, the U.S. Supreme Court gave the state of Texas permission to implement SB4 while questions about the constitutional validity of the law remain.  SB4 will perpetrate physical, legal, and psychological harm against migrants seeking protection at the U.S.-Mexico border, as well as countless people living in the state by allowing Texas law enforcement to stop, question, and prosecute anyone who they suspect could be an immigrant. Those Texas residents include Young Center staff and volunteers, and our families, friends and allies in and around our offices in the Rio Grande Valley, Houston, and San Antonio. 

Alexis Bay, Health Justice Legal Fellow at the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, said:  

“There is tremendous uncertainty about the potential impact of SB4. Given the xenophobic rhetoric Texas officials have embraced in supporting the law, and the patently dangerous practices the state has used to move recently arrived migrants out of Texas, it’s hard not to imagine the worst possible outcomes. SB4 allows state officials to usurp the power of federal immigration authorities and to deny asylum seekers all of the protections that Congresses and presidents of both parties have enacted into law over the last 40+ years. 

We expect that as Texas officials use SB4 to expand their efforts to arrest people who “look like” migrants, they will ensnare teenagers and even younger children. These youth could face jail time, family separation, and banishment from the country without ever seeing an attorney or immigration officials. Children the Young Center would normally be appointed to serve—under a bipartisan anti-trafficking law—could be arrested or expelled before we even learn of their presence. 

SB4 is an attack on the safety of children and families. We are grateful for our Texas based partners and encourage the Texas community to take advantage of the resources and updates they are providing, including this one.” 

###  

The Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights is a non-profit organization that protects and advances the rights and best interests of immigrant children and advocates for an immigration system that treats children as children first. For press inquiries, please contact Erika Andiola at eandiola@theyoungcenter.org.