Understanding the 14th Amendment

The 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution is critical for determining citizenship rights, stating that all persons born or naturalized in the United States are citizens. This amendment was ratified post-Civil War to secure citizenship rights for newly freed slaves, effectively ensuring that anyone born in the U.S. would be granted full citizenship status. This principle has historically been understood to apply universally, but recent political arguments suggest that it may not extend to all individuals born in the country. The distinction revolves around the concept of jurisdiction, specifically focusing on whether the parents were lawful residents at the time of birth.