PRESS RELEASE 

For immediate release 

September 9, 2025

Contact: press@alianzaamericas.org / (773) 638-4278

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Chicago, IL- Today, the Supreme Court allowed ICE to continue stopping and questioning individuals based on ethnicity, English proficiency, location, and type of work. This decision strips Latin American communities of Fourth Amendment protections and leaves them vulnerable to arbitrary and often violent enforcement actions. Alianza Americas, a network of 58 migrant-led organizations from Latin America and the Caribbean, strongly rejects this ruling and joins in the concerns expressed by Justice Sotomayor in her dissent, which highlight the discriminatory and unconstitutional nature of these practices.

The Court’s decision effectively sanctions the targeting of people who appear Latino, work low-wage jobs, or live and work in immigrant neighborhoods, regardless of their actual immigration status. These practices echo a long history of persecution and discrimination against Mexican and Central American communities.

Justice Cavanaugh argued that ethnicity alone is not reasonable suspicion but can be considered with other factors. He dismissed individuals’ interest in avoiding questioning as a “law-evading” concern. Alianza Americas rejects this reasoning, which treats ethnicity as inherently suspicious. In her dissenting vote, Justice Sotomayor finds that the government did not submit evidence to prove the irreparable harm it would suffer, which justified the emergency ruling, and that it could have continued its immigration enforcement operations provided that it used more than the four factors mentioned.

Once more, the Administration is circumventing the legal process, resorting to the Emergency Docket, claiming irreparable harms, it does not have. The majority of the court ignored the possibility that the plaintiffs could be detained once more based on the criteria mentioned above.

The Fourth Amendment protects from unreasonable search and seizures, and the Court has left all persons with Latin American features without that protection, and subject to the violent actions of ICE agents. This is an inexplicable decision that harms all persons of Latin American ethnicity, low-wage workers, individuals working or living in immigrant and poor neighborhoods of our cities, with limited English abilities. 

We expect this case to continue, with the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit considering the appeal, and the possibility that the Supreme Court may later review the case by granting a writ of certiorari—a formal request for the Court to examine the lower court’s decision.. It will be incumbent upon the lower courts to do justice and uphold the protections that the highest court of the U.S. has denied today. 

Even though today is an incredibly sad day for justice, Alianza Americas will continue defending the Rule of Law. As Latin American communities in the United States, we will continue seeking protections and fighting to uphold this nation’s constitutional principles.

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Alianza Americas is a transnational network of migrant-led organizations in the United States. We advocate for social justice, equity and human rights in the Americas.

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