OCA–Greater Houston Decries Proposed 19th Century Style Texas Alien Land Law as Xenophobic, Unconstitutional, and Bigoted
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 23, 2022
Contact:
Trisha Morales, Communications & Programs Lead
trisha.morales@ocahouston.org
Debbie Chen, Director
713-446-8430
debbie.chen@ocahouston.org
Houston, Texas – OCA-Greater Houston, one of the state’s leading Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) advocacy groups issued the following statement in regards to proposed Texas Senate Bill 147:
Texas Senate Bill 147 is a shameless attempt to revive tropes under the guise of economic competition and security. Let us be clear: Texas legislators are bringing back century old racist tactics with no factual basis. These types of laws were wrong 100 years ago during the era of the Yellow Peril Xenophobia and they are wrong today.
Alien Land Laws are deeply rooted in xenophobia and racism. Support for such discriminatory laws are a disrespectful slap in the face to the millions of immigrants and entrepreneurs who make significant contributions to our state. Such legislation is an egregious violation of the constitution as ruled in Sei Fujii v. California, which stated that forbidding aliens from owning land was a violation of the 14th Amendment's equal protection clause. Texas repealed the Texas Alien Land Law (from 1921) in 1965 as such laws imposed “unreasonable and discriminatory restrictions.”
We will fight back against these bigoted attempts to discriminate against our community.
Under the law as proposed, individuals who are not U.S. citizens and companies from China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia would be banned from purchasing or acquiring land in the state of Texas. Mirroring the era of Yellow Peril Xenophobia in the US, a time where leaders cultivated the idea that Asian immigration posed a severe threat to the economic interests of the country, legislation like Texas SB 147 are being proposed across the country. This proposed legislation also comes against the backdrop of a surge of anti-Asian hate in recent years along with the racial profiling of community members.
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About OCA-Greater Houston
OCA-Greater Houston is a chapter of OCA-Asian Pacific American Advocates, a national social justice nonprofit dedicated to improving the social, political, and economic well-being of Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs). Learn more at ocahouston.org and ocanational.org/about.
