LULAC President's Reaction to Building America’s Trust Act

August 4, 2017

Washington, D.C. – On Thursday, U.S. Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), John Barrasso (R-WY), Ron Johnson (R-WI), and Thom Tillis (R-NC) introduced the Building America’s Trust Act, arguing that a stand-alone wall along the full length of the U.S.-Mexico border is not the answer. The American people deserve a common sense bipartisan approach to border security and immigration reform.

In response, LULAC National President Roger C. Rocha Jr. issued the following statement:

“I support investing in resources that help state and local law enforcement, improve ports of entry, and leverage technology for multilayered infrastructure that helps secure our borders. However, we must remember that national security and civil rights are not mutually exclusive and we must work to achieve both. Additionally, we must find ways to increase trust between immigrant communities and local law enforcement, instead of targeting sanctuary cities and creating an environment of fear. We thank Senator Cornyn for giving us the opportunity to provide input on the issues addressed by the bill, particularly in regards to improving port points of entry, creating infrastructure and roads to reach areas that are hard to access, hiring more immigration judges to address the large caseloads that are pending, and hiring more port and agriculture inspectors. We look forward to continued dialogue with Senator Cornyn on these and other points with the goal of improving the bill and protecting the rights of millions of hard working immigrants in our country.”

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The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans and builds strong Latino communities. Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 1,000 councils around the United States and Puerto Rico, LULAC’s programs, services and advocacy address the most important issues for Latinos, meeting critical needs of today and the future. For more information, visit www.LULAC.org.