Senate Resolution 25-005
Page 1, Line 101Concerning the United States federal government's unjust
Page 1, Line 102use of the Alien Enemies Act to indiscriminately target
Page 1, Line 103immigrants.
Page 1, Line 1WHEREAS, In his inaugural address on January 20, 2025,
Page 1, Line 2President Donald J. Trump announced his plan to invoke the Alien
Page 1, Line 3Enemies Act of 1798 for the federal government "to use the full and
Page 1, Line 4immense power of federal and state law enforcement to eliminate the
Page 1, Line 5presence of all foreign gangs and criminal networks bringing devastating crime to United States soil, including our cities and inner cities"; and
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Page 1, Line 7WHEREAS, At a campaign stop in Aurora, Colorado on October
Page 1, Line 811, 2024, Trump suggested the use of the Alien Enemies Act as part of
Page 1, Line 9his "Operation Aurora" plan to "target and dismantle every migrant criminal network operating on American soil"; and
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Page 1, Line 11WHEREAS, The Alien Enemies Act is referenced in Project 2025,
Page 1, Line 12the blueprintorganized by the Heritage Foundation that aligns with over 60 actions that the Trump administration has taken in its first month; and
Page 1, Line 13
Page 1, Line 14WHEREAS, After his inauguration, President Trump signed
Page 2, Line 1several executive orders related to immigration, including an executive
Page 2, Line 2order titled "Protecting the American People Against Invasion", which is
Page 2, Line 3designed to "expand the use of expedited removal" of undocumented immigrants under the guise of national security; and
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Page 2, Line 5WHEREAS, President Trump has declared a national emergency
Page 2, Line 6at the United States-Mexico border and has instructed several federal
Page 2, Line 7agencies, including Customs and Border Patrol and Immigration Customs
Page 2, Line 8and Enforcement, to indiscriminately target immigrants and undocumented people across the country; and
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Page 2, Line 10WHEREAS, President Trump has a history of repeatedly using dehumanizing language to describe immigrants; and
Page 2, Line 11
Page 2, Line 12WHEREAS, During his previous term, President Trump used his
Page 2, Line 13authority as president to continue the Obama administration practice of
Page 2, Line 14separating families and detaining migrants, including children, in concentration camps at the United States-Mexico border; and
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Page 2, Line 16WHEREAS, The Alien Enemies Act was first passed in 1798 as
Page 2, Line 17one of four Alien and Sedition Acts, giving authority during wartime to
Page 2, Line 18the president to detain or deport the natives and citizens of an enemy nation; and
Page 2, Line 19
Page 2, Line 20WHEREAS, The United States is not at war with any country, and
Page 2, Line 21therefore there are neither natives nor citizens of an enemy nation to be detained; and
Page 2, Line 22
Page 2, Line 23WHEREAS, In 1941, following the Japanese attack on Pearl
Page 2, Line 24Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt used the Alien Enemies Act to
Page 2, Line 25arrest and unjustly detain innocent Japanese community leaders on the
Page 2, Line 26west coast of the United States without due process in Department of Justice "internment" camps; and
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Page 2, Line 28WHEREAS, In 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order
Page 2, Line 299066, which authorized the forced removal of at least 120,000 people of
Page 2, Line 30Japanese descent, of whom approximately 70,000 were American
Page 2, Line 31citizens, for placement into concentration camps, stripping them of their possessions, businesses, livelihoods, and dignity; and
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Page 2, Line 33WHEREAS, The concentration camps were built hastily by the
Page 2, Line 34War Relocation Authority and kept the Japanese and Japanese-American
Page 3, Line 1incarcerees under armed surveillance at all times, forcing the detainees to
Page 3, Line 2face the hardships of extreme weather conditions, lack of privacy, mental and emotional stress, and the disruption of family unity; and
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Page 3, Line 4WHEREAS, One of the ten United States concentration camps,
Page 3, Line 5Amache, was built in Granada, Colorado and remains a physical reminder of this dark chapter of American history; and
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Page 3, Line 7WHEREAS, In 1988, the Civil Liberties Act was signed into law,
Page 3, Line 8which issued a formal apology for the wartime incarceration order and provided reparations to the living survivors of the incarceration; and
Page 3, Line 9
Page 3, Line 10WHEREAS, Several times since 1988, Congress and the executive
Page 3, Line 11branch have issued apologies for wartime incarceration,and more
Page 3, Line 12recently a decision by the United States Supreme Court overruled the Korematsu decision, thereby acknowledging the error of this action; and
Page 3, Line 13
Page 3, Line 14WHEREAS, The physical, emotional, and mental trauma of the
Page 3, Line 15incarceration is still felt to this day by Japanese-American survivors and their descendants; and
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Page 3, Line 17WHEREAS, Individuals, including many Japanese-American
Page 3, Line 18descendants of wartime incarceration, have voiced their concerns about
Page 3, Line 19the dehumanizing language and actions against immigrants in the United
Page 3, Line 20States and have drawn parallels between the Japanese-American mass
Page 3, Line 21incarceration and the actions of the federal government today against immigrants and their families; now, therefore,
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Page 3, Line 23Be It Resolved by the Senate of the Seventy-fifth General Assembly of the State of Colorado:
Page 3, Line 24That we, the members of the Colorado Senate:
Page 3, Line 25
Page 3, Line 26(1) Express disapproval of the federal government's invocation of
Page 3, Line 27the Alien Enemies Act to target non-citizens living peacefully in the United States; and
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Page 3, Line 29(2) Call on Governor Jared Polis to vocalize his support for all
Page 3, Line 30Coloradans and use his office to build solidarity and trust with immigrant communities; and
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Page 3, Line 32(3) Call on Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper of
Page 4, Line 1Colorado to sign on to Senator Mazie Hirono's introduced bill in the
Page 4, Line 2United States Senate, the Neighbors Not Enemies Act, to repeal the Alien Enemies Act; and
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Page 4, Line 4(4) Call on Representatives Diana DeGette, Joe Neguse, Jeff
Page 4, Line 5Hurd, Lauren Boebert, Jeff Crank, Jason Crow, Brittany Pettersen, and
Page 4, Line 6Gabe Evans of Colorado to sign on to Representative Ilhan Omar's
Page 4, Line 7introduced bill in the United States House of Representatives, the Neighbors Not Enemies Act, to repeal the Alien Enemies Act.