The Evolution Of Citizenship Law In The Us

Citizenship in the United States is a legal status that confers specific rights and duties on Americans. It is a foundational concept, rooted in the Constitution and various laws, international agreements, and court rulings. The history of citizenship in the US is complex and has evolved over time.

The concept of citizenship in the US began in colonial times, with an active relationship between men working together to address municipal issues and participating in democratic decision-making. However, over time, citizenship became less defined by political participation and more defined by legal rights and privileges.

The first statute to define nationality and naturalization was the Naturalization Act of 1790, which limited eligibility to free, white persons. This Act also tied a woman's nationality to her marital status, with judicial rulings and customs establishing that women were unable to participate in public life.

The Fourteenth Amendment, ratified in 1868, was a pivotal moment in the expansion of citizenship, granting citizenship to former slaves and overruling the Supreme Court decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) that denied citizenship to African Americans.

The Naturalization Act of 1906 established the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization, standardizing procedures for naturalization nationwide. This Act also introduced security features and uniform rules for issuing and replacing certificates of citizenship, combatting naturalization fraud.

Today, US citizenship is typically acquired through birthright or naturalization. Birthright citizenship is guaranteed to most people born within US territory (except American Samoa), while naturalization is a process where eligible legal immigrants apply for citizenship. The specific requirements for naturalization have evolved over time but generally include residency, moral character, knowledge of the Constitution, and English language proficiency.

The Fourteenth Amendment

Section 1: Citizenship and Civil Rights

The first section of the Fourteenth Amendment includes the Citizenship Clause, the Privileges or Immunities Clause, the Due Process Clause, and the Equal Protection Clause.

Citizenship Clause

The Citizenship Clause defines citizenship, stating that "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 clause supersedes the Supreme Court's decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857), which held that Americans descended from African slaves could not be U.S. citizens.

Privileges or Immunities Clause

The Privileges or Immunities Clause protects the privileges and immunities of national citizenship from interference by the states. It has been interpreted to mean that states cannot interfere with privileges and immunities possessed by virtue of national citizenship.

Due Process Clause

The Due Process Clause prohibits state and local governments from depriving persons of life, liberty, or property without a fair procedure. It has been interpreted to make most of the Bill of Rights applicable to the states, recognizing substantive and procedural requirements that state laws must satisfy.

Equal Protection Clause

The Equal Protection Clause requires each state to provide equal protection under the law to all people, including non-citizens, within its jurisdiction. This clause has been the basis for many decisions rejecting discrimination against people belonging to various groups.

Section 2: Apportionment of Representatives

The second section of the Fourteenth Amendment addresses the apportionment of representatives among the states, taking into account the whole number of persons in each state, excluding untaxed Native Americans. It also includes a provision to penalize states that withhold the franchise from adult male citizens for any reason other than participation in crime, by reducing their representation in Congress.

Section 3: Disqualification from Office for Insurrection or Rebellion

Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment disqualifies individuals who have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the United States from holding any office, civil or military, under the United States or any state. This section was added to bar individuals who had supported the Confederacy during the Civil War from holding public office.

Section 4: Validity of Public Debt

Section 4 confirms the legitimacy of all public debt appropriated by Congress and states that neither the United States nor any state shall pay for the loss of slaves or debts incurred by the Confederacy.

Section 5: Power of Enforcement

The final section of the Fourteenth Amendment, Section 5, grants Congress the power to enforce the provisions of the amendment through appropriate legislation.

Birthright citizenship

> 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 principle was confirmed by the 1898 Supreme Court case United States v. Wong Kim Ark, which clarified that children born in the US to immigrant parents are citizens, regardless of their parents' immigration status.

History of Birthright Citizenship in the US

The US's first naturalization law came into effect in 1790, stating that "free white persons" could gain citizenship if they had lived in the country for two years and had a good character. The law ignored enslaved people and Native Americans, neither of whom were considered citizens.

In 1857, the US Supreme Court found in the Dred Scott v. Sandford case that Scott, an escaped slave, was not a citizen because he was of African descent. Nor could any other person of African descent be considered a citizen, even if they were born in the US, Chief Justice Roger B. Taney wrote in the majority opinion.

However, this definition didn't last long. During and after the Civil War, lawmakers returned to the debate about whether black people should have birthright citizenship. In 1864, Attorney General Edward Bates found that "free men of color" born on American soil were American. After the war, the Reconstructionist Congress passed a civil rights law that extended citizenship to all people born in the US who were "not subject to any foreign power."

The most sweeping declaration of birthright citizenship came in 1868 with the Fourteenth Amendment. While most Native Americans were excluded from this amendment, it defined citizenship as applying to "all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof."

In 1898, the Fourteenth Amendment's definition of birthright citizenship was challenged in the case of Wong Kim Ark, a Chinese-American cook born on American soil to Chinese immigrants. When Wong was denied reentry into the US after visiting China, he was forced to wait on a ship in San Francisco harbour for months as his attorney pursued his case for citizenship. He was a test case, selected by the Department of Justice in an attempt to prove that people of Chinese descent weren't citizens.

However, Wong won the case, with the Supreme Court finding that the Fourteenth Amendment included the children born in the US of all other persons, regardless of race or colour. To take his citizenship away would threaten the privilege and citizenship rights enjoyed by white Americans. The case became precedent and has since been used to defend the birthright citizenship rights of other Americans.

Modern Controversies

Despite birthright citizenship being enshrined in the Fourteenth Amendment, there have been modern controversies and challenges to this principle. For example, in 2015, a Pew survey found that 53% of Republicans and 23% of Democrats opposed the concept. In 2018, President Trump said he intended to remove birthright citizenship by means of an executive order, although the constitutionality of such an order was widely debated. During his 2024 re-election campaign, Trump again promised to end birthright citizenship if elected.

Naturalization

History of Naturalization Law in the US

The first naturalization law in the US was the Naturalization Act of 1790, which limited citizenship to "free white persons" who had resided in the country for two years and had kept their current state of residence for a year. It also required a three-year notice of intention to apply for citizenship. This law was amended in 1795, which increased the residency requirement to five years, and in 1798, which further increased the residency requirement to 14 years.

In 1802, the Naturalization Law repealed and replaced the Naturalization Act of 1798. This new law restricted naturalization to "white persons", with no mention of their freedom or social status.

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, policies regarding naturalization began to shift to a national level. The Naturalization Act of 1906 standardized procedures for naturalization across the country and created the Bureau of Naturalization. This Act also addressed the issue of naturalization fraud by requiring all naturalization courts to issue standardized certificates of citizenship (also called certificates of naturalization) and submit duplicate copies to the Bureau of Naturalization.

In 1917, the Jones-Shafroth Act conferred nationality with citizenship rights upon all inhabitants of Puerto Rico, regardless of when their birth occurred in the territory.

In 1940, amendments to the Cable Act granted married women their own nationality without restriction. That same year, the Nationality Act distinguished for the first time different rules for derivative nationality for legitimate and illegitimate children.

In 1943, the Supreme Court decision of Schneiderman v. United States established that clear and convincing evidence must be evaluated in processing a denaturalization action.

In 1952, the McCarran-Walter Act revised the National Origins Formula, allotting quotas in proportion to the national origins of the population as of the 1920 census. This Act also ended the use of race as a criterion for admission to the country or naturalization.

In 1965, the Hart-Celler Act abolished the system of national-origin quotas and, for the first time, limited immigration from the Western Hemisphere.

Eligibility and Process for Naturalization

To be eligible for naturalization in the US, an applicant must be at least 18 years old, a legal permanent resident of the US, and have had a status of a legal permanent resident for five years. They must also demonstrate good moral character, evidenced by a lack of a criminal history, and pass a test on US history and civics. Most applicants are also required to have a working knowledge of the English language.

The process of naturalization involves applying to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, paying requisite fees, and taking an Oath of Allegiance.

The Naturalization Act of 1790

Citizenship in the United States is a legal status that confers specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits. Citizenship can be obtained through birthright or naturalization. The former is specified in the Citizenship Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution, which states:

> 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 latter is provided for in U.S. law, which grants Congress the power to establish a "uniform rule of naturalization".

The 1790 Act authorized any "court of record" to perform naturalization. In other words, for over 110 years, any federal or state court of record could naturalize a qualified applicant. This led to a lack of uniformity in naturalization procedures across the country, with every court imposing its own specific procedures and fees, and issuing its own unique certificates.

The Naturalization Act of 1802

Citizenship in the United States is a legal status that entails specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits. There are two primary sources of citizenship: birthright citizenship and naturalization. Birthright citizenship is granted to persons born within the territorial limits of the United States (except American Samoa), or to those born abroad to a US citizen parent. Naturalization, on the other hand, is a process in which an eligible legal immigrant applies for citizenship and is accepted.

The power to establish a uniform rule of naturalization is granted explicitly to Congress in Article I, Section 8, Clause 4 of the US Constitution. Congress passed the first naturalization law for the country, the Naturalization Act of 1790, which restricted naturalization to "free white persons" of good character who had resided in the country for at least two years. The minimum residence requirement was extended to five years in 1795, and in 1798, the Alien and Sedition Acts further lengthened the period to declare an intent to become a citizen to five years, extended the minimum residence requirement to fourteen years, and barred the naturalization of aliens from countries at war with the US.

In 1802, Congress repealed the previous laws and restored the five-year residence requirement and the three-year declaration of intent period. The Naturalization Law of 1802 continued to limit eligibility for naturalization to "free white persons" who had good moral character. This law also extended citizenship to children of naturalized citizens who were under twenty-one at the time of their parents' naturalization and who were residing in the US, as well as children of US citizens born outside the country (unless their fathers had never resided in the US).

Over the years, Congress continued to establish naturalization policies with varying conditions and restrictions. In 1870, naturalization eligibility was extended to "aliens of African nativity and to persons of African descent". However, it was not until the passage of the Equal Nationality Act of 1934 that foreign-born children of US citizen mothers and alien fathers could apply for citizenship. It was also not until 1940 that married women were granted their own nationality without restriction.

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