Americans for Constitutional Citizenship Coalition Denounces Vitter-Paul Attempt to Eviscerate Constitutional Citizenship
Today, Americans for Constitutional Citizenship, a diverse coalition of civil and human rights organizations dedicated to preserving the integrity of our nation’s Constitution and its guarantee of natural-born citizenship, issued the following statement in response to Senators David Vitter and Rand Paul’s intent to introduce a resolution to amend the U.S. Constitution’s definition of American citizenship:
The following can be attributed to Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and a key organizer behind the Americans for Constitutional Citizenship coalition.
“The Vitter-Paul Resolution seeking to eviscerate the Constitution’s definition of citizenship is an insult to the basic values and foundations of our nation. The 14th Amendment’s guarantee of citizenship to those born on U.S. soil is a cornerstone of our identity as Americans, one that has served our nation well for more than 140 years.
The Vitter-Paul Resolution would take a sledgehammer to this foundational principle, creating a caste system of second-class citizens that the authors of the 14th Amendment, in their wisdom, specifically rejected. Likewise, the Vitter-Paul Resolution should be rejected as foolishly unwise and divisive. Senators should be working instead to find solutions that will make our nation stronger and provide greater opportunity for all who aspired to achieve the American Dream.”
Americans for Constitutional Citizenship is a diverse coalition of civil and human rights organizations dedicated to preserving the guarantee of American citizenship for those born in the U.S. The coalition’s growing membership includes The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, ACLU, NAACP, Center for American Progress, Asian American Justice Center, Southern Poverty Law Center, the Opportunity Agenda, National Council of La Raza, LULAC, National Immigration Forum, NALEO, American Immigration Council, American Immigration Lawyers Association, MALDEF, and more. More information on the coalition can be found here.