Nearly anyone born on United States soil, including territories like Guam and Puerto Rico, is automatically considered a U.S. citizen. This is called birthright citizenship by virtue of jus soli or right of the soil. Moreover, individuals born outside the U.S. can still acquire U.S. citizenship if at least one parent is a U.S. citizen. This also falls under the broader principle of birthright citizenship but is under the specific principle of jus sanguinis or right of blood.
Why Does the United States Have Birthright Citizenship: Understanding the Origin and Purpose
Historical Origin and Legal Basis of Birthright Citizenship in the United States
Jus Soli, African American Slavery, and Dred Scott v. Sanford
The principle of jus soli can be traced to English common law during the early 17th century. The law back then asserted that anyone born within the territory of the Crown owed allegiance to the sovereign, regardless of parentage, and was therefore a subject. A landmark English legal decision in 1608, popularly known as Case of the Postnati, affirmed that a child in Scotland, after the Union of the Crowns under King James VI and I in 1603, was also an English subject.
Nevertheless, since Britain had colonies in the Americas, the American colonies inherited the principle of jus soli and applied it to those born on colonial soil. It is worth noting that there was no formal and constitutional definition of citizenship in the U.S. before the 1861-1865 American Civil War because the framers of the 1787 U.S. Constitution purposely left it vague since the issue was sensitive and deeply tied to slavery, racial issues, and the power of states.
The Constitution essentially let each state decide who counted as a citizen for purposes like voting and civil rights. This created inconsistent and unequal definitions. There was no uniform national citizenship for marginalized groups like free Black Americans, Native Americans, and immigrants. The existence of slavery made defining citizenship dangerous for the slaveholders. Southern states believed that doing so could lead to recognizing Black people as U.S. citizens.
Moreover, in the infamous Dred Scott v. Sanford case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1857 that all African Americans, whether free or enslaved, were not citizens and had no legal standing to sue in federal court. The court noted that the framers did not intend them to be U.S. citizens. This decision denied citizenship by birth to an entire class of people. It fueled tensions leading to the Civil War and highlighted the urgent need to define citizenship explicitly.
14th Amendment and U.S. v. Wong King Ark Case Ruling
The American Civil War ensued due to the and uncompromising differences between the North and South over the institution of slavery. Nevertheless, after the war, the U.S. Congress adopted the 14th Amendment in 1868 as part of the Reconstruction Amendments. Its Citizenship Clause was designed to supersede and overturn the Dred Scott decision and ensure citizenship for formerly enslaved people by cementing birthright citizenship in the Constitution.
Specifically, as stated in the Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment, “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.” This explicitly established that birth within the U.S. generally confers citizenship regardless of race or citizenship status of parents. This has provided a constitutional guarantee of legal equality for all individuals born on U.S. soil.
The 14th Amendment still needed a legal demonstration in the court. The U.S. v. Wong Kim Ark case in 1898 was the landmark case that solidified the interpretation of the Citizenship Clause. It involved Wong Kim Ark, a Chinese born in San Francisco in 1873, and the anti-Chinese sentiment of the late 19th century, including the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 which banned Chinese immigration and barred Chinese immigrants from becoming U.S. citizens.
Wong Kim Ark, after a trip to China to visit his parents, was denied reentry to the U.S. by customs officials in 189. The issue went to the court. The government argued that the 14th Amendment did not apply to the children of subjects of foreign power. The Supreme Court held in 1898 that any person born on U.S. soil, regardless of the citizenship status of their parents, except if the parents were diplomats or enemy soldiers, is a U.S. citizen under the 14th Amendment.
Initial Purpose of Birthright Citizenship in the United States and Evolving Role
Introducing a Race-Neutral Standard for U.S. Citizenship
The initial purpose of birthright citizenship, especially the passage of the 14th Amendment, was to supersede and overturn the 1857 ruling in Dred Scott v. Sandford. Remember that this case saw the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that Blacks, regardless if they were slaves or freed, were not U.S. citizens. The controversial decision left millions of people in limbo and was a catalyst for the Civil War. The U.S. Congress felt the need to introduce a constitutional amendment.
Millions of formerly enslaved African Americans were freed after the American Civil War which spanned from 1861 to 1865. However, despite their emancipation, their legal status was unclear. Many southern states refused to recognize them as citizens. The U.S. Congress wrote and passed the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to ensure that Black Americans born in the U.S. would be full citizens with constitutional protections and equal rights under the law.
It is also important to underscore the fact that Southern states were attempting to limit the rights of freedmen through laws known as Black Codes. These laws restricted the movement, labor, and legal standing of individuals freed from slavery. The U.S. Congress sought to create and promote a universal and race-neutral standard for citizenship using the principle of birthright citizenship and disregard standards like racial identities or ethnicities and ancestral lineage.
Establishing National Standards and Constitutional Definition
Remember that there was no consistent national standard for who was considered a citizen before the 14th Amendment. States made different decisions. This created confusion and inconsistency. The U.S. was also developing federal power during the 17th century. It was testing the boundaries of federal or national versus state authority. There was also little political pressure and no incentive at the time to come up with a national standard for defining citizenship in the U.S.
The American Civil War established and demonstrated further the political authority and influence of the federal government. Hence, as a response to the contentious Dred Scott v. Sanford decision in 1857, and as part of the Reconstruction Amendments to reconstruct the American South after the war, the U.S. Congress passed the 14th Amendment to put into rest the debate over citizenship by establishing birthright citizenship as one of the main factors of citizenship.
Promoting Further the Principles of Democracy and Equality
Another key concern was that a hereditary underclass would emerge if children born in the U.S. to formerly enslaved people or other marginalized groups were not citizens. This would undermine the fundamental American ideals of equality and opportunity. The full adoption of birthright citizenship was intended to integrate these new generations fully into U.S. society and prevent them from being denied basic rights and considered second-class citizens.
The 14th Amendment was also intended to guarantee that U.S. citizenship is a federal right. Note that citizenship confers more specific rights like suffrage, due process, and legal protection. The absence of a clear definition could encourage states to use citizenship conferment for political or discriminatory purposes. Birthright citizenship makes U.S. citizenship an objective fact rather than a subjective judgment of the government or influential political actors.
It is also important to underscore the fact that the U.S. had just fought a ruthless civil war over slavery and inequality. The federal government considered that granting automatic citizenship to all born on U.S. soil would embed further the founding ideals of equality and liberty more fully into the U.S. Constitution. This goal has stood the test of time. The 14th Amendment has become a cornerstone of American civil rights laws like desegregation to voting rights.