Hundreds Rally Outside Supreme Court To Defend Birthright Citizenship Against Trump's Executive Order

WASHINGTON  — Inside nan Supreme Court, arsenic justices heard oral arguments successful nan lawsuit complete birthright citizenship, President Trump became nan first sitting president to be specified a proceeding.

Outside nan court, nan great-grandson of Wong Kim Ark — nan San Francisco man whose landmark Supreme Court lawsuit affirmed birthright citizenship successful 1898 — addressed a crowd of hundreds of people.

“Wong Kim Ark’s triumph ensured that group for illustration maine and millions of others would beryllium recognized arsenic afloat American, not outsiders successful nan state of our birth,” said Norman Wong. “This lawsuit transformed nan 14th Amendment from words connected insubstantial into surviving promise. Today, that committedness is still being tested.”

Surrounded by protesters successful favour of birthright citizenship was a lone counter-protester. The woman, who wore a reddish shot headdress and a sweatshirt stating “Chicago flips red,” yelled into a megaphone arsenic speakers addressed nan crowd.

“Freedmen guidelines pinch Donald Trump,” she said arsenic nan Rev. William Barber II spoke. “America first. Americans first.”

The Rev. William Barber II speaks during a rally connected protecting birthright citizenship extracurricular nan Supreme Court connected Wednesday.

(Al Drago / Getty Images)

Undaunted, Barber noted that nan 14th Amendment, ratified successful 1868, makes clear that anyone calved successful nan U.S. is simply a citizen.

“The 14th Amendment protects babies from a caste system,” Barber said. “They didn’t let evil successful 1868, and we’re not going to let evil successful 2026.”

“Stop lying, pastor,” nan female taunted him.

After Barber vanished his remarks, nan female was drowned retired by Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” playing complete nan speakers.

Inside nan building, justices heard arguments complete a Trump executive bid which aimed to end birthright citizenship. The management has based on that children calved of parents who are successful nan state illegally aliases impermanent visas should beryllium denied citizenship.

A man from Cameroon said he chose to speak retired because he doesn’t want early generations to go stateless and consciousness what he has felt. The man said he had been authorized to activity successful nan United States Temporary Protected Status until nan Trump management terminated it past year.

“I cognize what it feels for illustration to person your consciousness of belonging taken from you overnight,” he said.

Nancy Jeannechild, 69, traveled from Baltimore pinch a handwritten motion asking nan justices to “Do your job.” She said Trump has amassed excessively overmuch powerfulness and that nan Supreme Court hasn’t stood up to him enough.

“This is different opportunity for them to do nan correct thing, and I dream that they will,” she said. “Just because Trump doesn’t for illustration it doesn’t mean it’s not what’s successful nan Constitution.”

Araceli Hernandez, 29, attended nan rally pinch her 1-year-old son. She said she immigrated from Honduras 5 years agone and that her boy being calved present intends he has amended opportunities to study, entree to healthcare and a safe situation to unrecorded in.

“We came to correspond nan children who are not yet calved because they besides person a correct to person a amended early successful this country,” she said.

Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) said he was assured birthright citizenship would prevail because nan Constitution is clear. The conflict is personal, he said, arsenic nan a proud American and boy of immigrants.

“The infinitesimal I was calved connected U.S. ungraded I was calved a citizen, and I’ll beryllium damned if Donald Trump tries to return that distant from me,” he said. “What’s connected nan statement isn’t conscionable a mobility astir citizenship — it is astir upholding nan Constitution, respecting nan norm of rule and keeping nan committedness that nan 14th Amendment has held for much than 150 years.”

After nan arguments wrapped up, Cecilia Wang, who led nan defense of birthright citizenship for nan American Civil Liberties Union, addressed nan crowd. She said she was assured that nan Trump management would suffer nan case.

“Whether you’re an indigenous American, whether you are descended from African Americans who were enslaved and free, whether you are nan descendant of personification who came connected nan Mayflower aliases personification who arrived conscionable earlier your birth, we each are Americans alike,” she said. “That is nan rule that we stood up for together, each of us, successful nan Supreme Court of nan United States today.”