Ending Birthright Citizenship Would Create an Underclass

From the Center for American Progress:

Less than Citizens
Abolishing Birthright Citizenship Would Create a Permanent Underclass in Our Nation
By Sam Fulwood III , Marshall Fitz

In a move contrary to the most cherished of American values, a band of ultraconservative activists are targeting the U.S.-born children of undocumented immigrants—and others—to score political points.

This issue brief examines the kind of society and democracy we would become if the 14th Amendment were amended to once again create a permanent underclass in our nation, delineating the costs and challenges of such policies if they were to prove successful. A retreat on birthright citizenship would set in motion a cascading effect of unforeseen, unintended, and unwanted consequences, among them:

“Big Brother” in every hospital delivery room—a profoundly costly and intrusive process of checking and verifying documents for every baby born in the United States
A new underclass of less-than-citizens—marginalized from society and weighing on our future economic competitiveness
Women burdened with childbearing decisions depending on citizenship parentage— endangering the newly born and their mothers in our country
An America that is suddenly and deeply anti-immigrant—contrary to our historical heritage and core national values

Read more and download this issue brief here.

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