MEXICO CITY (AP) — The Mexican government has raised its voice against the anti-immigrant laws approved by the Florida and Kansas congresses, which it considers to be violations of human rights and “inspired by sentiments of xenophobia and white nationalism,” and which they could amount to “hate crimes against the migrant community.”
After the entry into force on Saturday of the new laws, the Mexican government expressed, through the Foreign Ministry, the rejection of the SB1718 regulation promoted by the governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, and said in a statement that the law will affect the rights of thousands of people and children “exacerbating hostile environments that can lead to hate acts or crimes against the migrant community.”
“The existence of transnational labor markets, as well as the intensity of the commercial and tourist ties between Mexico and Florida, cannot be ignored by measures inspired by sentiments of xenophobia and white nationalism,” said the statement in which it is recognized that this type of of policies have a “strong impact” on the bilateral relationship between Mexico and the United States.
The new Florida law requires all businesses with 25 or more employees to use the E-Verify program to document new hires’ eligibility to work or face loss of business license or fines of $1,000 per day per employee. It also requires hospitals that accept Medicaid to ask patients if they are US citizens or if they have legal authorization to live in the United States and voids driver’s licenses issued by other states to people who entered the country without legal authorization.
DeSantis, who is running alongside former President Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination, has made immigration a central campaign issue.
The new law has raised concerns in Florida, where major industries — tourism, agriculture and construction — rely on immigrant labor, and fears the economy will be disrupted as employers struggle to find workers beforehand.
Similarly, Mexico condemned in a statement the Kansas HB2350 law to combat human trafficking, which was approved by the legislators of that state despite the veto of the Democratic governor Laura Kelly, and affirmed that this type of initiative induces “racial profiling and that can give rise to discriminatory acts and abuses against the Hispanic, Latino and Mexican community”.
The Mexican government indicated that it will be attentive to ensure respect for the rights of its compatriots in Florida and Kansas.
