Four Chinese immigrants are suing the state of Florida over a new law that bans them from purchasing property in parts of the state.
The law, signed by presidential candidate and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, is set to take effect on July 1st.
It restricts people from “foreign countries of concern” – defined as China, Russia, Iran, Korea, Cuba, Venezuela, and Syria – from buying agricultural land and property within 10 miles of “critical infrastructure”.
When signing the law, a press release from DeSantis stated its components are intended to “counteract the malign influence of the Chinese Communist Party in the state of Florida.”
“I’m proud to sign this legislation to stop the purchase of our farmland and land near our military bases and critical infrastructure by Chinese agents, to stop sensitive digital data from being stored in China, and to stop CCP influence in our education system from grade school to grad school. We are following through on our commitment to crack down on Communist China.”
“China and other hostile foreign nations control hundreds of thousands of acres of critical agricultural lands in the U.S., leaving our food supply and our national security interests at risk,” said Florida’s Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson in the same press release.
Lawsuit Backed by ACLU
The suit was filed on behalf of four Chinese plaintiffs who argue the law “stigmatizes them and their communities, and casts a cloud of suspicion over anyone of Chinese descent who seeks to buy property in Florida.”
The American Civil Liberties Union is representing the group of immigrants in court.
They contend the law violates the Fair Housing Act and that “there is no evidence of national security harm resulting from real estate ownership by Chinese people in Florida.”
Though Florida’s bill was the first officially signed into law, over a dozen states have introduced similar bills targeting Chinese ownership of agricultural land.
They ARE NOT U.S. CITIZENS. if they renounce their citizenship of China and become citizens of the U.S. they will be welcome to purchase land. As Americans each state has the right to make the laws of the people, by the people, for the people that are citizens. The Chinese have no dog in the fight.
The picture accompanying this article is probably not of Florida.
I didn’t even realize that ILLEGAL migrants had any rights in our courts, barring suits for violent actions, etc. etc.
Like Tarheel has already said, if they want to do it legally, let them take the test and pledge allegiance to OUR Flag.
Otherwise, no deal. Let them all go back to where they came from.