Alabama Attorney General Luther StrangeMONTGOMERY -- Attorney General Luther Strange has asked the court to lift an injunction against a section of Alabama's immigration law that prohibits illegal immigrants from enrolling in state colleges.
Lawyers for the state wrote in the motion filed May 24 that revisions approved by Alabama lawmakers in the recent legislative session should alleviate a judge's concerns that the state was overstepping its bounds.
Alabama's immigration law states that "an alien who is not lawfully present in the United States shall not be permitted to enroll or attend any public postsecondary institution."
U.S. District Judge Sharon Blackburn in September issued an injunction against the section, citing the second sentence, which said, "an alien attending any public postsecondary institution in this state must either possess lawful permanent residence or an appropriate immigration visa."
Blackburn wrote that the wording of the section also would exclude some "lawfully present aliens" from attending college. One of the plaintiffs who challenged the state's immigration law was a lawfully present refugee from Eritrea, but because he was classified as a refugee he had neither an immigration visa nor status as a permanent resident.
Blackburn wrote that Alabama was improperly attempting to classify immigrants. "This classification of aliens for the purpose of determining who is eligible to attend Alabama's public postsecondary institutions is preempted as only Congress may classify aliens," she wrote.
Lawmakers struck the disputed sentence when they approved revisions to the state's immigration law in the recent legislative session.
"As that second sentence has been removed by Act No. 2012-491, the basis for the court's injunction against Section 8 no longer exists," lawyers for the state wrote.
Sen. Scott Beason, R-Gardendale, said during debate on the revision bill that the section dealing with postsecondary education was specifically altered to try to take care of judicial concerns.
Mary Bauer, legal director for the Southern Poverty Law Center -- one of the groups that challenged the state's immigration law in court -- said plaintiffs are fighting to keep the injunction in place.
"It is a sad day for Alabama and this country when lawmakers attack fundamental American values by telling our young people who simply want an education and want to be successful and productive citizens that the American dream is not for them. These students have worked hard and could be the next generation of lawyers and doctors. Denying them the American dream robs them, Alabama and our country of the benefits of their hard work," Bauer said in a statement.
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