An unopposed bill to remove the term “alien” from all state statutes is moving quickly through the California Legislature. Lawmakers seek to abolish use of the terms “alien” or “illegal alien,” which they deem offensive to foreign nationals who have entered the United States illegally. The California Assembly voted 71 to zero to strike the word “alien” from all state statutes on May 20. Six Republicans and one Democrat abstained from the vote. No members spoke in opposition to the bill, which now heads to the state Senate. Assemblywoman Luz Rivas (D-Arleta), author of Assembly Bill 1096 (AB 1096), said the proposed legislation “deletes the outdated and offensive term ‘alien,’ which is found throughout our state laws, and replaces it with appropriate legal terminology, such as ‘noncitizen.’” “Although the term alien has historically referred to individuals that are noncitizens, the word has since been weaponized and used in place of …