Birthright Citizenship: Who gets to be an American?

Last week, July 7-11, 2025, I had the privilege of attending a professional development program downtown Chicago with a diverse group of about thirty-five K-12 teachers from Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Colorado. The program, “Connecting Past, Present, and Future: Teaching American History and Civics for Empowered Citizenship," was a thought-provoking and enriching experience and included boxed lunches and a stipend for participants. (Thank you, taxpayers!) 

The program was one of the most enriching professional development experiences in my 31 years of teaching. Presenters included teachers with decades of experience as well as history, education, and law professors. Unfortunately, despite plans to continue through 2026, the grant and the program it funds are ending. I had committed to bringing 10 students to a constitutional convention simulation in Springfield, Illinois, in April 2026, but this wonderful learning experience will not happen. The Secretary of Education informed the program director that the program's goals do not align with the current administration's priorities, and the funds for the third year have been impounded.

But what does this have to do with my Civil War novel, TO LIVE A PATRIOT? As educated Americans know, the Union victory in the Civil War paved the way for the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. These amendments abolished slavery, granted citizenship and equal protection, and gave Black men the right to vote. Unfortunately, these amendments were undermined by Ku Klux Klan violence, literacy tests, poll taxes, grandfather clauses, Jim Crow laws, Black Codes, mass incarceration, and Supreme Court decisions.

But what of birthright citizenship? The 14th Amendment is clear: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.” The clause “subject to the jurisdiction thereof” is important and excludes children of foreign diplomats who are born on U.S. soil. Unfortunately the jurisdiction clause also excluded American Indians from citizenship until 1924.

Of course the current president is trying to end birthright citizenship for the children of undocumented immigrants. He signed the “Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship” executive order on January 20th, which can be read in its entirety on the White House website: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/protecting-the-meaning-and-value-of-american-citizenship/

The president claims the 14th Amendment was intended solely for "the babies of slaves" and not for children of resident aliens or undocumented immigrants, arguing they aren't "subject to the jurisdiction" of the U.S. He argues courts have never ruled that children of noncitizens have birthright citizenship.

But the president is wrong, legally and historically. 

A little history: The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was the first U.S. law to restrict immigration based on ethnicity, targeting Chinese immigrants by denying them entry, citizenship, and voting rights. Initially set for ten years, it was renewed in 1892 and made "permanent" until its repeal in 1943 during World War II, when China was an ally of the United States.

Wong Kim Ark, c. 1900 Identification Photograph on Affadavit "In the Matter of Wong Kim Ark, Native Born Citizen of the United States." filed with the Immigration Service in San Francisco prior to his May 19 depature on the Steamer "China." The document refers to US District Court- San Francisco Admiralty (Habeas Corpus) Case 11198., 05/14/1904 - 05/19/1904. Public Domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WongKimArk.gif

A child of Chinese immigrants born in the U.S. before the Chinese Exclusion Act would be a U.S. citizen under the 14th Amendment, yet the Exclusion Act directly contradicts this. This conflict is exemplified by the case of United States v. Wong Kim Ark (1898). Wong Kim Ark, born in San Francisco in 1873 to Chinese parents, traveled to China in 1891. Upon returning to San Francisco in 1894, he was denied entry as government officials argued he was not a citizen.

The Supreme Court ruled 6-2 in favor of Wong, stating that a child born in the U.S. to alien parents is a citizen. The justices affirmed that the 14th Amendment applies as written, and since his parents were laborers subject to U.S. law, their child was a citizen.

Short news story from the Washington Post, reporting the Supreme Court's ruling in the Wong Kim Ark case. 29 March 1898 https://www.proquest.com/docview/143972825 Public Domain.

The current Supreme Court recently allowed the President to enforce his executive order denying birthright citizenship to children of non-citizen residents. However, on July 11th, 2025, a New Hampshire Federal District Court judge accepted a class action lawsuit against the administration, once again blocking the order nationwide. The rule of law is vital, and the Trump administration is expected to comply with the court order.

This controversy extends beyond citizenship and raises the issue of American identity. The vice president weighed in when he stated on July 4th, 2025: “I think the people whose ancestors fought in the Civil War have a hell of a lot more claim over America than the people who say they don’t belong.” His comments appear to be a reaction to the Anti-Defamation League criticizing those who glorify the Confederate cause of their great-grandparents and proudly wave the racist Confederate battle flag. 

Being American means different things to different people, but fundamentally, it is a commitment to liberty, equality, and democracy for all. This is not a cliché but a battle cry. A battle cry for a struggle I believed we won decades ago during the Civil Rights movement and the fight for women's equality.

In my first year of teaching (1995), I shared Corporal John W.N. Doak’s Civil War letters with my U.S. history students. After mentioning my great-great-grandfather's involvement in the Civil War, a student remarked, “Wow, Mr. Doak, your family has been here over 100 years? You are a REAL American.” I replied, “Thanks, but that implies I'm more American than others because of my family's history here, which offends me. We don't rank ourselves by ancestry; our Americanness is measured by our commitment to America's ideals and values.”

Helping students understand America’s struggle to live up to its best ideals and exploring our rights and responsibilities is what teaching American history and civics is all about. I have always believed this.

Not everyone can be an American citizen. Not everyone wants to be. But are we to continue to be a multi-racial, multi-ethnic pluralist democracy, or is the American experiment doomed to fail?

Owen C. Doak

July 14th, 2025