What is Birthright Citizenship in US??
Very simply Birthright Citizenship is a legal principal under which citizenship is automatically granted to individuals upon birth.
Presently in the US there are two forms of birth- related citizenship, ancestry-based citizenship and birthplace- based citizenship.
What has happened?
President Donald Trump's executive order- 'Protecting the meaning and value of American citizenship,' has left the Indian diaspora stunned.
Many believed that Trump's speeches during his campaign trial of ending 'citizenship by birth,' would apply only to children of illegal immigrants.
The overarching belief of Indian families was that documented legal immigrants like the H-1B holders, or those on other work visa's like the L (intra- company) visa or even a F (student) visa, would not be impacted. They are in for a rude shock.
Why Trump wants to and it?
Trump categorically said that he wants to end Birthright citizenship, because it is "ridiculous" but what he meant is that he wants to discourage illegal immigration.
Trump has argued that nationals of countries with high level of immigration to the US, including India and China have particularly exploited this system.
Trump has been talking about wanting to end birthright citizenship since his first term in office.
Who is most likely to be impacted?
This is the largest annual increase in more than 20 years since 2000. In 2022 Mexico was the top country of birth for immigrants who arrived in the last year with about 150,000 people.
India about 145,000 and China about 90,000 were the next largest sources of immigrants.
Impact on Indian- Americans
If Trump's move is implemented, children born to Indian citizens who are living in the country on temporary work visa or tourist visa would no longer automatically receive citizenship.
Can Trump do it?
While the order can prompt US federal agencies to interpret citizenship using a more strict and narrow definition, it will run into legal hurdles, which have already been set into motion.
Second, doing away with birthright citizenship would require a constitutional amendment, with a two- thirds vote in both the House of Representative and the Senate and approval by three quarters of the US states. Trump's party, the Republicans, have a majority in both the house of representatives as well as the senate.
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