Words are important; they carry heavy responsibility, giving meaning to the world around us. It’s important to realize that their improper use may lead to danger. In the last few years, New York City has been overly focused on replacing terms such as ‘alien’ and ‘illegal immigrant’ throughout their official government documents. While this may seem like a positive move, generalizing and blurring language may ultimately lead to legal complications down the line.
Every term holds a specific legal meaning, and generalizing it would complicate legal issues in multiple ways. There are noncitizens who are here lawfully and have taken all the proper steps, but now they will share the same term with people who are unlawfully living in New York.
This is a poor attempt to remove these important distinctions and it will complicate legal matters. If you use the terms "illegals" or "illegal aliens" with the intent to demean, humiliate or harass a person, you will be slapped with a fine of up to $250,000. How complicated will it become in the future to ascertain intent in these cases if there is a violation? The NYC Commission on Human Rights also says the use of the word alien or alienage "may carry negative connotations and dehumanize immigrants, marking them as 'other.'”
Andrew Hanen, A Federal District Court Judge stated this when he issued an injunction against President Barack Obama’s DAPA program: “The court also understands that there is a certain segment of the population that finds the phrase ‘illegal alien’ offensive.” The court uses this term because it is the term used by the Supreme Court in its latest pronouncement pertaining to this segment of the law.
The courts are known for their precise language and clear distinctions. It will be an added burden for future proceedings... not just for the courts, but for lawyers attempting to avoid the specific terms. There can also be challenges in writing orders without using the correct distinct terms, rather than using a single imprecise term to explain judgments.
It would have been appreciated had the legal complications and implications been considered by the Council while proposing the changes. Safeguarding the legal definitions should have also been considered, and legal consultation could have been sought when drafting the bill.
We may see a spike in court cases due to the new “Non-Citizen” terminology implemented in New York City and its violation implications. Now, the burden will be on the courts to sort out the messes that arise from the new definition.
