Freedom Papers, Again? SCOTUS Just Dragged Us Backward
The Supreme Court’s latest ruling on immigration raids is more than a legal setback. It’s a chilling return to a time we swore we’d never revisit. By giving immigration agents the power to stop and arrest people without even reasonable suspicion, the Court has resurrected the ugly logic of freedom papers.
For generations, free Black people were forced to carry documents to “prove” their freedom. Without them, they risked being kidnapped and sold into slavery. Even with them, safety was never guaranteed. Those papers could be torn up, dismissed, ignored. Black life was always suspect, and the burden of proof always rested on the oppressed.
That’s what this ruling does today. It puts immigrants, Latinos, and anyone who “looks” like an outsider in constant danger of being stopped, questioned, detained. It tells them: carry your papers or risk your freedom. It tells entire communities: you are guilty until proven innocent.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in a blistering dissent, called out exactly what is at stake. She warned that the Court’s decision represents a “grave misuse” of power and sets a precedent that leaves people vulnerable to racial profiling and arbitrary arrest. Her words echo across history: unchecked government authority always falls hardest on the marginalized.
We must name this for what it is: a legalized license for racial profiling. A direct assault on our rights. A dangerous echo of the Fugitive Slave Acts that once hunted Black people under the guise of law.
We cannot allow this to stand. This is not just an “immigration issue.” This is a fight over whether any of us are truly free. Because when one group is forced to prove their right to exist, it sets the stage for all of us to live under suspicion.
So what do we do?
We organize: local communities must build rapid response networks to document raids, support families, and challenge abuses.
We resist: elected officials must be pressured to pass laws that block state and local cooperation with unjust federal enforcement.
We speak out: every faith leader, union, and civic group must call this ruling what it is — a betrayal of the Constitution and of basic human dignity.
Freedom is not a piece of paper. It is a birthright. And when the Supreme Court tries to strip that away, it falls to the people to rise up and defend it.
History is watching. The question is whether we’ll let it repeat itself.
For more information
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/08/us/politics/supreme-court-immigration-racial-profiling.html
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/09/supreme-court-racial-profiling-ice/
