Jill Lepore on the Construction of American Citizenship

NEW YORK — The American Civil Liberties Union today condemned President Trump’s latest attacks on birthright citizenship with his new executive orders. The Supreme Court handed the Trump administration a stinging loss just a few weeks ago when it struck down the president’s previous order that sought to undo this fundamental constitutional protection. The ACLU successfully argued that case, Trump v. Barbara. “The Supreme Court already decided this issue: Birthright citizenship is guaranteed by the Constitution. No additional executive order can change the meaning of the Constitution. Any executive order that tries to rewrite birthright citizenship will meet the same fate as the last one,” said Cody Wofsy, deputy director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project.  

The claimants detail being unlawfully detained, denied medical care, or targeted simply for speaking out or recording what they saw. Their experiences reveal a dangerous pattern of abuse that threatens the rights and safety of us all.

NEW YORK — Two more federal appeals courts this week rejected the Trump administration’s new policy subjecting millions of immigrants to mandatory detention without access to bond hearings. Both the Ninth Circuit and Seventh Circuit issued July 30 decisions in American Civil Liberties Union lawsuits. Read the Ninth Circuit ruling here. Read the Seventh Circuit ruling here. The rulings reflect similar decisions from four other federal appeals courts, as well as those issued by hundreds of district court judges who have found the policy unlawful. For decades, immigrants in removal proceedings who were detained by the government have generally had the right to seek release through a bond hearing before an immigration judge. In mid-2025, the Trump administration suddenly adopted a new radical reinterpretation of the immigration laws and declared that anyone who entered without inspection must be detained without access to bond. Among those who were affected were people who came as children and are eligible for legal status, even those with long-pending immigration applications who have been waiting years due to administrative backlogs. “The courts have repeatedly ruled against the Trump administration’s radical reinterpretation of our country’s detention laws,” said My Khanh Ngo, senior staff attorney with the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project, who argued the Seventh Circuit appeal. “The law is clear: The administration can’t cruelly lock up people this way without giving them the basic due process of a bond hearing. Period.”

SEATTLE — Another federal appeals court has rejected the Trump administration’s new policy subjecting millions of immigrants to mandatory detention without access to bond hearings. Today’s ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit stems from a lawsuit involving the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project and the American Civil Liberties Union. The ruling joins similar decisions from four other federal appeals courts and hundreds of district court judges in finding the policy unlawful. For decades, immigrants in removal proceedings who were detained by the government have generally had the right to seek release by an immigration judge. In mid-2025, the Trump administration suddenly adopted a new radical reinterpretation of the immigration laws and declared that anyone who entered without inspection must be detained without access to bond. Among those who were affected were people eligible for legal status, even those with long-pending immigration applications who have been waiting years due to administrative backlogs. They include Ramon Rodriguez Vazquez, the named plaintiff in this case. He had no criminal record and was arrested at his home in Washington state where he has lived for more than 15 years with his wife, four children, and now grandchildren. The following is reaction to today’s ruling: “This ruling restores the right to a bond hearing for class members and all persons like Mr. Rodriguez detained in the Ninth Circuit, while they go through this lengthy and difficult process,” said Matt Adams, legal director of the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project. “And just as vital, it upholds the rule of law, making clear the administration cannot unilaterally change the law.” “The courts have once again ruled the Trump administration’s cruel and radical reinterpretation of our country’s detention laws cannot stand. We are thrilled for our clients and their families,” said My Khanh Ngo, senior staff attorney with the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project. The ruling is here.