‘Dehumanizing’ terms for immigrants targeted
States weigh axing words like ‘alien,’ ‘illegal’ from statute
AUSTIN, Texas — Luz Rivas remembers seeing the word on her mother’s residency card as a child: “alien.”
In the stark terms of the government, it signaled her mother was not yet a citizen of the U.S. But to her young daughter, it meant the family did not belong even though they were going through the naturalization process.
“I want other children of immigrants, like me, to not feel the same way I did, that my family did, when we saw the word ‘alien,’ ” said Rivas, now an assemblywoman in the California Legislature.
The Democratic lawmaker sought to retire the term and this year authored a bill — since signed into law — that replaces the use of “alien” in state statutes with other terms such as “noncitizen” or “immigrant.” Her effort was inspired by a similar shift earlier this year by the Biden administration.
Immigrants and immigrant-rights groups say the term, especially when combined with “illegal,” is dehumanizing and can have a harmful effect on immigration policy.
The word became a focal point of debate in several states earlier this year as the number of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border swelled and led to fierce backlash against Biden administration policies by Republican governors and lawmakers.
Lawmakers in at least seven states considered eliminating use of “alien” and “illegal” in state statutes this year and replacing them with descriptions such as “undocumented” and “noncitizen,” according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Only two states, California and Colorado, actually made the change.
State Sen. Julie Gonzales, who co-sponsored the new Colorado law, said during a legislative committee hearing that words such as “illegal” were “dehumanizing and derogatory” when applied to immigrants. Gonzales said the legislation aimed to remove the only place in Colorado statute where “illegal alien” was used to describe people living in the U.S. illegally.
“That language has been offensive for many people,” she said. “And some of the rationale behind that is really rooted in this idea that a person can certainly commit an illegal act, but no human being themselves is illegal.”
Using “alien” to describe those who are not U.S. citizens has a long history, dating to the nation’s first naturalization law, passed while George Washington was president. Fearing a war with France, Congress also passed the Alien and Sedition Acts in 1798, which sought to suppress political subversion.
Sage Naumann, spokesperson for the Colorado Senate Republicans, said the Democratic-controlled Legislature should be spending its time on matters of deeper importance to residents, such as taking steps to fight inflation, tackle crime and improve education.
The Biden administration received some pushback after its change in policy.
In April, U.S. Customs and Border Protection ordered employees to avoid the word “alien” in internal documents and public communications and instead use “noncitizen” or “migrant.” “Illegal alien” also was out, to be replaced by descriptions such as “undocumented noncitizen.”
“We enforce our nation’s
laws while also maintaining the dignity of every individual with whom we interact,” Troy Miller, acting commissioner, wrote to employees of the largest U.S. law enforcement agency, which includes the Border Patrol.
Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott objected, writing that the edict contradicted language in criminal statutes — although Miller made an exception for legal documents — and plunged the agency into a partisan debate. Scott, a Trump-era appointee, refused to sign off
on the order and believes his outspokenness on that and other issues contributed to him being forced out of his position in June.
The Associated Press found that more than a dozen states still use the terms “alien” or “illegal” in statutes referring to immigrants.
After fleeing violence in El Salvador, Rosalidia Dardon spent 16 months in an immigration detention center in California before arriving at a refugee home in Texas in 2016. She was determined
to find a job while she sought asylum but had lost her work visa after her protected status expired.
Dardon, 54, blames the ankle monitor she was forced to wear and the description of immigrants with terms such as “illegal” for a job search marked by rejection.
One moment is frozen in her memory.
“I won’t give you a job because you are a criminal,” Dardon told the AP in Spanish, repeating what a hiring manager in Texas said to her.