Farmworker Communities Take Action against SB1718 on July 1st
The widely unpopular, anti-human rights laws that were born out of Florida's 2023 Legislative Session went into affect on July 1st. For months now, our community has been protesting these bills, particularly SB1718 which puts harmful restrictions on work, healthcare, travel, and more for immigrants. With over 4.5 million (over 20% of the FL population) immigrants in the state, communities everywhere will feel the effects of this awful law. In response to SB1718 officially going into affect, there were protests, marches, and events all throughout the state. All five offices of the Farmworker Association were involved in Florida's demonstrations that day. SB1718 has already caused significant harm to immigrants both with and without regulated legal status. Now that the bill is officially in effect, we expect the harm to continue and to worsen. One of our concerns is the manor in which SB1718 will be enforced. Racial profiling is all but required for maintaining the new law. For