CHICAGO (WLS) — Pilsen resident Teresa Fraga came to the United States from Mexico decades ago. With a green card, she worked as a migrant worker in six different states. All six of her children are U. S. citizens because of the 14th Amendment. ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch “And the opportunity for them has been great for them,” Fraga said. It’s been an opportunity for millions of Americans, who were born in the U. S. to parents who are not American citizens. President Donald Trump is asking the U. S. Supreme Court to uphold his executive order eliminating birthright citizenship. As he arrived at the high court Wednesday, Trump was the first sitting president to attend oral arguments. “The question before the court is really whether or not we have been misinterpreting this amendment for 100 for 150 years,” said Ed Yohnka, with the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois. The 14th Amendment was ratified more than 150 years ago, guaranteeing citizenship to former slaves and their children. “It did not grant citizenship to the children of temporary visitors or illegal aliens, who have no such allegiance,” Solicitor General D. John Sauer said. But, the ACLU and other legal experts argue automatic citizenship for people born in the U. S. goes back to English law. And in 1898, the Supreme Court affirmed its understanding of the 14th Amendment by ruling a man born to Chinese immigrants was a U. S. citizen. “There seems to be a belief on the part of the administration that because they won a single election, the Constitution no longer applies,” Yohnka said. But, Trump’s attorney argued it’s a new world, since billions of people are a plane ride away from having a child who is a U. S. citizen. Based on some of the justices’ questions and comments, the ACLU is confident the high court will uphold birthright citizenship. “Well, it’s a new world. It’s the same constitution,” U. S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts said.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/chicago-woman-says-children-given-great-opportunity-birthright-citizenship-supreme-court-considers-trump-case/18824872/