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Day 1 of the second Donald Trump presidency arrived on Monday, with the brand new commander-in-chief promising to challenge an order that may put an finish to birthright citizenship for youngsters of fogeys who’re in the US illegally.
“As part of my plan to secure the border, on day one of my new term in office, I will sign an executive order making clear to federal agencies that under the correct interpretation of the law, going forward, the future children of illegal aliens will not receive automatic U.S. citizenship,” President Trump stated.
However would an order like this be unconstitutional? The 14th Modification says so. “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 14th Modification states in part 1 of the legislation.
Many different politicians and immigrant advocacy teams who defend the rights of the nation’s many undocumented residents additionally agree that birthright citizenship — conferred upon somebody born in the US as residents, no matter their mother and father’ citizenship standing — can’t be revoked with the stroke of a president’s pen.
Laurie Ball Cooper, vp for U.S. authorized applications on the Worldwide Refugee Help Challenge, referred to as the proposal “fundamentally un-American,” including that it might be unlawful if enacted.
“Since the 14th Amendment was ratified in 1868, birthright citizenship has been one of the unique qualities that makes America a land of promise, freedom, and opportunity,” she stated. “Stripping that protection from future children would not only violate the Constitution, it would pose a threat to the civil rights of all Americans and create a permanent underclass without equal protections.”
CEO of WIN Christine Quinn stood alongside fellow service suppliers and homeless and immigrant rights advocates on the steps of Metropolis Corridor and denounced President-elect Trump’s promise of mass deportations and cuts to social companies allegedly part of what has develop into extensively often called Challenge 2025.Photograph by Dean Moses
Ball Cooper defined that if the coverage had been to develop into legislation, whether or not by way of an govt order or new modification, it might harm many People.
“If implemented, this attack on the Constitution would inevitably lead to family separation, racial discrimination and incalculable harm to Americans denied protections that are, at their very core, their birthright,” she stated.
It might even be “an attack on our values,” Murad Awawdeh, president and CEO of the New York Immigration Coalition, added.
“Birthright citizenship has been protected by the 14th Amendment of the Constitution for 150 years. It is a simple standard for determining who is an American, without regard for the color of one’s skin or ancestry,” he stated. “We will fight this unconstitutional order, and we will prevail.”
U.S. President Donald Trump reacts after being sworn in on the day of his Presidential Inauguration on the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., January 20, 2025.REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/Pool
Beginning tourism would finish
The chief order would additionally cancel what is named “birth tourism,” when overseas nationwide ladies enter the US through the remaining weeks of being pregnant “for the sole purpose” of acquiring U.S. citizenship for his or her baby, Trump’s agenda states.
Though it’s tough to say simply what number of U.S.-born adults who’re youngsters of unauthorized immigrants dwell within the nation, the PEW Analysis Middle places that quantity at about 1.3 million.
Eliminating birthright citizenship would undoubtedly be a troublesome problem to pursue, however Trump has remained outspoken about his supposed reform of immigration.
Donna Lieberman, govt director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, responded by saying Trump has a “disdain” for American freedoms, including that the ACLU is able to tackle the battle of birthright citizenship revocation.
“We are ready once again to fight Trump’s cruelty in the courts, the legislature, and in the streets,” Lieberman stated in a press release.
She recounted her group’s earlier work throughout Trump’s first time period in workplace from 2017 to 2020, when he initially enacted immigration adjustments.
“We won the reunion of immigrant children with their families, ended indefinite ICE detention in our state, and helped hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers speak out, know their rights and take action,” she stated.
U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres, who represents the South Bronx, jumped onto social media large X to criticize Trump’s plan.
“Birthright citizenship is guaranteed by the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution,” he wrote. “The executive order is blatantly unconstitutional. The American people oppose the end of birthright citizenship.”
Make the Highway NY, a gaggle that advocates for immigrant communities, launched an internet pledge for New Yorkers and others to register opposition to Trump’s anticipated crackdown on unlawful immigration. On the group’s web site, it lists earlier immigration actions the president has taken, together with the “Remain in Mexico” coverage that requires migrants searching for asylum to remain within the southern nation till their U.S. immigration courtroom date arrives.
Each Presidents Trump and Joe Biden supported the coverage.
“Beginning on Day 1, President Trump has promised to ‘carry out the largest domestic deportation operation in American history,’“ the group’s petition reads. “He has introduced plans to focus on immigrant youngsters, households and employees, and to, as soon as once more, separate youngsters from their mother and father on the border.
In the meantime, some NYC-based politicians applauded Trump’s first day in workplace, together with U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis who represents components of Brooklyn and Staten Island.
“Today is the day of the great American comeback,” she posted on X. “Today is the day we begin our work to make America safe, secure, prosperous, affordable and great again!”
