Born in the USA: Defending Birthright Citizenship

WASHINGTON — Today, the American Civil Liberties Union launched a national ad campaign ahead of the organization’s April 1 arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court on a landmark case challenging America’s constitutional right to birthright citizenship. The campaign, which represents an uplifting visual tapestry of what it means to be an American, features Bruce Springsteen’s iconic anthem “Born in the U.S.A.” In a rare move, Springsteen authorized the ACLU's use of the song to highlight what’s at stake in the Supreme Court case, Trump v. Barbara, and how the constitutional guarantee of birthright citizenship is integral to American values and the very fabric of our nation. “Bruce Springsteen’s song ‘Born in the U.S.A.’ is an American anthem. It captures what birthright citizenship has made possible for generations: the simple, powerful guarantee that if you are born here, you belong here, if you’re born in the USA, you’re an American. Period,” said Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the ACLU. “As the ACLU prepares to defend this bedrock principle in the highest court of the land, we are joined by millions of Americans who agree that the 14th Amendment of the Constitution – not President Trump – decides who is a citizen.” Titled, “The Beat,” the ad campaign was produced as a partnership between Stink, Creative Artists Agency, and the ACLU, and directed by award-winning filmmaker Anderson Wright. The campaign centers on a nationally distributed video airing across broadcast and digital platforms, including during quintessential American primetime programs such as MLB’s opening game day, Survivor, The Voice finale, and more. The 30-second television spot will debut on March 23 in advance of the ACLU’s oral arguments before the Supreme Court on April 1. A digital billboard will also appear outside Minneapolis' Target Center from March 30-31, coinciding with the launch of Springsteen's 2026 Land of Hope and Dreams American Tour in the city. Opening with the unmistakable drumbeat that gives the campaign its name, the video highlights everyday moments across the country — in classrooms, on job sites, at family gatherings, and at civic milestones. What begins as a solitary rhythm in an empty middle school band room builds into a cross-country portrait of people working, learning, celebrating, and contributing to their communities. The ad culminates with a visual of Americans from different generations and backgrounds closing with the message: “Protect Birthright Citizenship.” Background on Trump v. Barbara On the first day of his second term, President Trump signed an executive order attempting to deny birthright citizenship for babies born in the United States to parents without permanent legal status. Within hours of the executive order being signed, the ACLU and its partners challenged the order in court, securing rulings that have prevented it from taking effect. Multiple courts have found the policy unconstitutional and inconsistent with longstanding Supreme Court precedent. The Supreme Court will now consider, in Trump v. Barbara, whether a president can unilaterally restrict the Constitution’s guarantee of citizenship to children born on U.S. soil. On April 1, the court will hear oral arguments from the ACLU’s National Legal Director Cecillia Wang who has spent more than 20 years at the ACLU and is herself a birthright citizen. Background on "Born in the U.S.A.” Released in 1984, “Born in the U.S.A.” debuted at a moment of national strain and reflection, telling the story of a Vietnam veteran returning home to economic hardship, neglect, and an America he no longer recognized. The song called on the nation to live up to its ideals. Decades later, as the Supreme Court considers whether to continue to guarantee citizenship at birth, the song resonates in a new constitutional context, drawing renewed attention to what it means, in law and lived experience, to be born in the United States. The 30-second cut of the ad can be found here. The full 60-second ad can be found here.    

WASHINGTON – This weekend, President Trump threatened to send ICE agents to airports during the Department of Homeland Security partial shutdown, escalating his criticism of Congress for denying a blank check to the agency. “Border czar” Tom Homan has confirmed that the administration is planning to deploy these agents to airports across the country, despite their lack of training for airport security and interactions, and their clear track record of abusing their power, including through using excessive force against citizens and immigrants alike. If this plan proceeds as described by President Trump, it will be the first time a president has sent armed ICE agents to airports to replace trained security agents and instill fear in families and other travelers. DHS, still funded with the $170 billion it received last summer in extra funding, is partially shut down because Congress is demanding meaningful reforms, including an end to indiscriminate stops and racial profiling by ICE, enforceable standards and accountability for violent misconduct by federal agents, and requirements that agents identify themselves and take off their masks. The White House and Congressional majority leadership have refused bipartisan calls to fund TSA and other parts of DHS while negotiations continue over reining in immigration agencies. More than 410,000 people joined the American Civil Liberties Union to send messages to their members of Congress urging them to reject any bill that would fuel ICE and Border Patrol’s lawless operations. Public opinion is firmly against capitulating to further funding for the lawless federal immigration agencies without proper reforms. In response to this news, Naureen Shah, director of policy and government affairs for immigration at the ACLU, issued the following statement: “Never in our history has a president deployed armed agents to the airport to inspire fear among families. The American people don’t want to live in White House advisor Stephen Miller’s dystopian police state. ICE and other federal agents have already shown the cost to us all when the president deploys them on his whim to act as a domestic policing force. Alex Pretti, Renee Good, Keith Porter Jr., Ruben Ray Martinez, and thousands of protestors, journalists, and people across the country have endured the brunt of lawless agents. America’s families travelling to see loved ones should not have to deal with ICE agents who likely have no training or experience with the mission of airport security. “President Trump and his allies in Congress refused to fund TSA and manufactured a crisis at airports across the country. Now, the president apparently wants to use ICE as his private security force, reminding all of us that ICE is not retreating from lawlessness but assigned at will by the president for political retribution. “This is the exact opposite of what the American people are clamoring for, which are real, enforceable changes to rein in ICE and Border Patrol’s cruel deportation and detention obsession.” Those traveling domestically or internationally should know their rights when doing so.

Immigration arrests have upended life in Minnesota as citizens detail unlawful and violent interactions with ICE in court testimonies as part of an ACLU lawsuit against the Trump administration.

WASHINGTON — The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and National Center for Youth Law (NCYL) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request today seeking information regarding the Trump administration’s treatment of pregnant unaccompanied minors in federal immigration custody. The FOIA seeks transparency from the Trump administration, which has reportedly been sending pregnant minors to government-funded shelters in states with abortion bans despite federal policy that requires the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) to prioritize placement of pregnant youth in states without abortion bans. Furthermore, the Trump administration has announced that it will propose changing a regulation regarding abortion access for unaccompanied immigrant minors. Current regulations and policy require ORR to ensure access to all pregnancy related care, including abortion. In its 2017 class action lawsuit Garza v. Hargan, the ACLU successfully sued the first Trump administration on behalf of a then 17-year-old Central American immigrant, Jane Doe, who had been prevented from accessing abortion care. Jane bravely fought not only for her own reproductive freedom, but that of hundreds of other young people subjected to this dangerous policy. Today’s ORR regulation, issued in 2022, is built upon the ACLU’s 2020 settlement in the case. In the years since Garza was settled, the ACLU and NCYL have continued to seek transparency from federal officials, including since President Trump began his second term. “Unaccompanied immigrant youth must be able to access the full range of reproductive health care, including abortion,” said Brigitte Amiri, deputy director of the Reproductive Freedom Project at the ACLU. “The ACLU represented a class of minors in a lawsuit after they were denied abortion access in the first Trump administration. We saw first-hand the importance of the ability of young people to make decisions about their pregnancies, and what it meant for their lives and futures. Our lawsuit led to the current policy, which protects access to crucial reproductive health care for these marginalized young people. Any attempts to restrict abortion access for youth in immigration shelters will be devastating. If any youth in ORR custody is denied access to reproductive health care, they should contact us at 212-549-2633.” Unaccompanied immigrant minors come to the United States without their parents, often fleeing violence or abuse in their home country. They usually have family in the United States who they are seeking to be reunited with. But until then, they are placed in shelters overseen by ORR. Some young people first learn that they are pregnant when they receive an initial medical exam at the shelter. Given the high rates of sexual assault on the journey to the U.S., some of these young people are pregnant as a result of violence. “ORR is responsible for a population of inherently vulnerable minors – minors that the agency has been making more vulnerable by keeping them unnecessarily separated from their families for longer and longer periods of time,” said Mishan Wroe, directing attorney at the National Center for Youth Law. “Given the prolonged detention youth are experiencing, it is more critical than ever that ORR maintain its legal obligations to ensure they have access to reproductive health care while detained.” Current ORR regulations require that pregnant unaccompanied minors be provided with information about and access to reproductive health care, including pregnancy care and abortion. ORR must also prioritize placing minors in shelters where abortion is legal because any pregnant minor could experience miscarriage or complications that require life- or health-saving abortion care. If a minor is in a shelter in a state with an abortion ban and she requests an abortion, ORR must transfer her to state where abortion is legal. But earlier this year, the Trump administration announced that it would cave to the demands of its anti-abortion allies and change this policy. Although the text of the proposed regulation is not yet available, immigration and reproductive rights advocates are concerned that the Trump administration will either try to impose a de facto or outright ban on abortion, similar to what the Trump administration imposed in its first term, and which the ACLU struck down. The FOIA request seeks all records and correspondence from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and its associated agencies, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and ORR, from January 2025 to the present regarding the administration’s treatment of unaccompanied pregnant minors, including any policies, procedures, and guidelines followed. The FOIA also requests any records regarding unaccompanied minors who seek information about or access to reproductive health care, including abortion and pregnancy care.