Bad News! Supreme Court Temporarily Removes Restrictions on Racial Profiling Arrests in Southern California

In a decision that most constitutional law experts consider incorrect, the Supreme Court on Monday cleared the way for ICE agents to continue as they have in their recent operations in Southern California, detaining thousands of immigrants solely because of their Latino appearance, whether due to their skin color, speaking Spanish, or being in a certain area.

A federal court in Southern California had ruled that this was a violation of the Constitution, that they were discriminating against people based on their race or appearance, i.e., racial profiling. Unfortunately, in a decision that is not final but takes effect immediately, the court is allowing ICE's “roving patrols” to continue making indiscriminate arrests.

The 6-3 decision, with a conservative majority, follows a pattern of the Supreme Court temporarily allowing some of the Trump administration's harshest policies, leaving room for a different outcome once the case reaches the Supreme Court. In the meantime, however, the decision harms millions of people in Southern California, allowing Trump and his agents to continue their discrimination against Latinos.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in a strong dissent, said, “Countless people in the Los Angeles area have been grabbed, thrown to the ground, and handcuffed simply because of their appearance, their accents, and the fact that they earn their living doing manual labor. Today, the court needlessly subjects many more to these same indignities.”

We agree with her 100%, and we are also somewhat, but not completely, surprised that the Supreme Court is becoming a court of INJUSTICE, setting aside the protections of the U.S. Constitution. We are also afraid because, although this lawsuit was for a situation in Southern California, it could also take effect here in Michigan, as ICE agents are already operating in massive campaigns in Chicago and Washington, D.C. Part of the lawsuit is that these types of actions by ICE agents not only affect immigrants, but also many U.S. citizens who have been mistreated.

Apparently, in Southern California, more than 5,000 arrests have been made since June 6, most of them simply because the individuals appear to be Latino. Republicans, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, have seen this as a “massive victory,” but for us it has been a very sad day, because they are making life more difficult for immigrants solely because of their appearance, including many who were born in the United States, naturalized, or are legal permanent residents.

It is sad that “the majority of the Supreme Court makes it clear that average non-white workers are targets, and functionally gives its stamp of approval for Trump to trample on their fundamental constitutional rights,” said Chris Newman, legal director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat, also said he found Kavanaugh's justification for lifting the suspension disturbing, which he said was an emergency situation. The emergency is discrimination against race, not the occasional undocumented worker. Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat and opponent of Trump, also said that this was a decision that gives agents broad latitude to conduct stops “including U.S. citizens and children, to deliberately harm California families and small businesses.”

As I said before, this is only a temporary defeat. We don't know what will happen when it reaches the Supreme Court in perhaps a year or two for a final decision, but in the meantime, it is a very harmful decision that generates a lot of fear and anger.