Groups Call for Legislative Action to Expand Protections for Immigrant Communities in New Mexico

In these times of terrifying mass deportations and raids across the nation, increased ICE enforcement in New Mexico, and violent, military-like tactics  wielded against immigrants and activists by masked federal agents, including the recent shooting death of Renee Good in Minneapolis, several New Mexico immigrants’ rights groups are banding together to urge Governor Lujan Grisham to include expanded protections for immigrant communities on her call at the 2026 legislative session and the Legislature to pass strong safety measures and opportunities for immigrant workers and families.  Organizations also invite New Mexicans to participate in the 2026 Immigrant & Worker’s Day of Action rally on Monday, January 26th at 10:30 AM on the west side of the Roundhouse.

Immigrant-based organizations have developed a legislative platform rooted in the real experiences, concerns, and hopes of immigrant communities across the state. Many local jurisdictions throughout New Mexico  already have policies, spearheaded by many of the same organizations, which have proven to promote public safety and economic development, keep families together, and protect the constitutional rights of all New Mexicans. Advocates call for expanded statewide protections.

The groups’  legislative platform for 2026 legislative session includes:

• Immigrant Safety Act: The Immigrant Safety Act is a critical step to protect New Mexico families by ensuring New Mexico public bodies do not enter into formal agreements to detain New Mexicans for federal civil immigration violations, prohibiting new detention contracts with ICE, and getting out of the mass deportation business.
• Driver Privacy & Safety Act: New Mexico currently has no limits on the use of Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR) technology. The data acquired can be accessed broadly by outside agencies, including ICE. This proposal would establish guardrails to ensure surveillance data cannot be misused against immigrants, patients seeking medical care, or protesters.
• Office of New Americans: Immigrant workers contribute significantly to New Mexico’s economy, yet the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions’ Office of New Americans is still temporary and limited. Making it permanent would create a one-stop shop to support labor rights, legal training, workforce development opportunities, and immigrant integration statewide.
• Funds for Expanded Legal Services: Too often, immigrant families must handle detention and deportation cases on their own without legal help.  Others in rural communities lack access to low-cost legal services to adjust their immigration status. Expanded state funding for legal representation, hotlines, and community education ensures due process and protects families from unjust outcomes. Lawmakers must maintain and grow recurring funds.
• Expanding Workforce Development: Financial barriers prevent many low-income and immigrant workers from accessing additional workforce training. The Legislature must expand recurring funding so more New Mexicans can upskill and move into high-demand careers: a win-win for families and industries currently experiencing workforce shortages.

“As immigrant communities face uncertainty nationally, our organizations are again coming together to move New Mexico forward. This Day of Action highlights the opportunity to promote dignity, protection, and opportunity for our communities across the state that keep New Mexico running. Immigrant voices must be part of the decisions that shape our state’s future.”–Marcela Díaz, Executive Director, Somos Un Pueblo Unido.

“Protecting immigrants means protecting public safety and the constitutional rights of everyone. The targeting of our communities promotes fear and erodes due process and trust in our institutions. Behind every deportation is a mother, a father, a child, or a worker who deserves to live with dignity. Today, by taking action, we honor the resilience and contributions of immigrant communities and demand humane and fair treatment. It is time to continue leading and organizing in the 2026 Legislative Session to ensure our communities are built not on deportations, but on rights, dignity, and justice.”–Fabiola Landeros,  Immigration Organizer, El CENTRO de Igualdad y Derechos.

“Our communities know what safety, opportunity, and dignity look like because we live these realities every day. This Day of Action is a reminder that immigrant families are not invisible, we are workers, caregivers, and leaders who power New Mexico. The 2026 legislative priorities are shaped by our stories and our resilience, and we are coming together to ensure policies reflect the needs

and hopes of families across the state.” –Jared Berenice Estrada, Political Director,The Semilla Project.

“Southern New Mexico stands united with our immigrant communities and the most vulnerable among us around the state and across the nation. New Mexico must take a strong, moral stand against ICE, private detention and invasive surveillance. We will fight with everything we have to protect the rights and dignity of all people.”–Sylvia Ulloa, Director, NM CAFe.

“We are not powerless against the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda. The most effective, immediate protections New Mexico can take against these acts of violence is to remove our public bodies from the business of mass deportation and put up guardrails to prevent bad actors from accessing New Mexico surveillance technology to track us and target our communities. We urge the passage of these bills that will create real, actionable impact in defending the constitutional rights and lives of all New Mexicans.” –Lena Weber, Director of Public Policy, ACLU-New Mexico

“Rooted in dignity, safety, and collective liberation, this legislative session is a rare and urgent opportunity for New Mexico to affirm that immigrant families belong, are protected, and deserve due process. By advancing these shared priorities, our state can choose care over punishment, community over fear, and a future where all families have the freedom to thrive.”–Miles Tokunow, Contigo Immigrant Justice

“New Mexico is at a pivotal moment, and we must do everything we can to protect our communities from a system that is growing more dangerous and deadly by the day. We continue to hear alarming reports from individuals held in ICE detention centers here in New Mexico—stories of neglect, mistreatment, and violations of basic human rights. These facilities operate with little oversight and virtually no accountability, putting lives and freedoms at risk. This platform sends a clear message: New Mexico will not be complicit in a system that harms people and erodes trust in our communities.” – Jessica Martinez, Director of Policy and Coalition Building, New Mexico Immigrant Law Center