Democrat Introduces Bill Preventing Trump Admin From Creating Registry for Undocumented Immigrants

Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal announced the introduction of a bill that would prevent the Trump administration from using forcing undocumented immigrants to enter a registry, give fingerprints and provide an address to the Department of Homeland Security or potentially face prosecution as part of its mass deportation plans.

According to the Democrat, the Trump administration is looking to reinstate a World War II-era law known as the Alien Registration Act of 1940, which allowed for the forced incarceration of Japanese Americans to build a current registry of undocumented immigrants.

"Think about times in history where authoritarian leaders have tried to force communities they don't like to sign up for a list and self-identify. It doesn't end well. This is incredibly dangerous," Jayapal wrote on X.

First introduced by Franklin D. Roosevelt during World War II, the long-dormant act was created to monitor individuals of Japanese descent, eventually placing them in concentration camps. "Now, the Trump administration is aiming to use this policy as a tool to force immigrants to register and subject themselves to a mass deportation scheme," the press release said.

The "No Round Up Act," introduced by Jayapal this week, would repeal the Alien Registration Act of 1940. It follows reports from February that the Trump administration was planning on creating such a registry.

The bill pushed by Jayapal is also co-sponsored by more than 20 Democratic lawmakers and has received the endorsements from organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Asian Americans Advancing Justice (AAJC) and from the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, many of which have been critical of Trump's executive orders targeting undocumented immigrants, including the Alien Registration Requirement order.

As reported by NBC News, a Jan. 20 executive order called for the creation of the registry and since then, officials created a new process for registration that is set to be scheduled and put into effect on April 11.

"The Trump Administration's proposed use of this policy would put a target on the backs of immigrants, many of whom are undocumented and have lived in this country for upwards of 16 years as contributing members of our economy and communities," Jayapal's team wrote in a statement.