On March 26, 1790, Congress passed the nation's first citizenship statute. Since then this area of law has changed dramatically. Today numerous paths to United States citizenship are available: citizenship acquired at birth also know as jus soli; and citizenship acquired at some later time.
Throughout the world, two principles have accorded citizenship at the moment of birth. They are: jus soli and jus sanguinis. This blog's focus is on jus soli.
Jus soli is literally "right of land". Traditionally associated with the English common law and historically rooted in feudalism, the jus soli generally confers a nation's citizenship on persons born within that nation's territory.
Just sanguinis is associated with European and other civil law systems and generally bestows a nation's citizenhip on the children of its existing citizens, regardless of where the children were born.
Some politicians are campaigning to amend the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which says in Section 1, "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and the State wherein they reside." These politicians want to change the U.S. Constitution to prevent undocumented mothers to give birth to their children --derogatorily referred to as "anchor babies-- in the land.
In emotional terms, citizenship means different things to different people. For many, citizenship is an element of personal identity, a link either between self and nation or between self and other individuals. The strength and meanings of those bonds vary with the values and experiences of the individual and with the history and culture of the particular nation.
From the legal standing point, citizenhip carries with it a number of specific rights that aliens do not have, such as freedom from the immigration laws.
It is obvious that altering our U.S. Constitution and our citizenship policy would not solve our illegal immigration crisis.
No comments:
Post a Comment