ACLU Lens: Citizenship At Birth Under the 14th Amendment
Today a group of state legislators announced they will introduce bills in their state legislatures intended to deny Americans the fundamental protections of the 14th Amendment by requiring states to deny standard birth certificates to many U.S. citizen babies born in the U.S. to immigrant parents. The proposed legislation directly contradicts the long-standing 14th Amendment guarantee that all people born in the U.S. and under its jurisdiction are citizens of the U.S. and the state in which they reside and subject to equal protection under the law. If enacted, the bills are unlikely to survive legal scrutiny since the Constitution can only be changed by amendment, not by state or federal statute.
"Who can be a citizen of the United States and enjoy the equal protection of the law should never be subject to the political and discriminatory whims of the day," said Dennis Parker, Director of the ACLU Racial Justice Project.
Lucas Guttentag, Director of the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project, said, "It would be hard to concoct a proposal that is more misguided and contrary to the sacrosanct guarantee of the 14th Amendment. Equality under the law for every person born in the United States is one of the Constitution’s central engines of equality and fundamental to our society."
In the News:
- Washington Post: Several States Want Court Ruling on Birthright Citizenship (1/6/2011)
- Wall Street Journal: The Case For Birthright Citizenship (8/11/2010)
- New York Times: Birthright Citizenship Looms as Next Immigration Battle (1/4/2011)
Get more information. Click here for the 14th Amendment hub page.
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(Links updated 1/6/2011.)
Jan 6th, 2011 at 3:20am
The ACLU = the devils own law firm!!!
Jan 6th, 2011 at 6:27pm
The devil does not exist, and if he did, he would support ACLU efforts; Satanism is about freedom and responsibility...
Jan 7th, 2011 at 3:50pm
I would like to respond to this "Non" issue.
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Jan 7th, 2011 at 5:06pm
seriously?? makes no sense- bc if I /kids are born in other countries we get a dual citizenship so whats up USA????
Jan 7th, 2011 at 7:48pm
What does defending the Constitution have to do with devilry?
Jan 8th, 2011 at 4:25am
14th Amendment provision was intended for children born of slaves in this country. It was not intended for illegal border crashing.
The parents having participated in illegal entry, their anchor babies were not born of parents "subject to our jurisdiction".
Jan 9th, 2011 at 8:12pm
So all of a sudden the Constitution is a Holy Grail that must not be changed... except the 2nd Amendment of course, that one is only used by bad people!
Jan 10th, 2011 at 1:30pm
ACLU is completely misinterpreting the 14th Amendment. This amendment was aimed towards the children of freed slaves, not illegal immigrants.
Jan 10th, 2011 at 9:25pm
The question is "ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS" not legal.
Jan 12th, 2011 at 11:16pm
HATS OFF TO THESE GUYS! It's about time somebody challenged this amendment. No more anchor babies born to illegals!
Jan 16th, 2011 at 11:37pm
Anti-American Organization
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