President Trump’s latest executive orders represent a dangerous attempt to undermine one of our nation’s most fundamental constitutional guarantees: birthright citizenship. The Fourteenth Amendment is not a suggestion, and its protections cannot be rewritten through executive action or political pressure.

 

Birthright citizenship is not a loophole, nor is it a privilege that can be granted or revoked based on political convenience. It is a constitutional right affirmed for more than a century through United States v. Wong Kim Ark, a landmark Supreme Court decision that rejected anti-Asian exclusion and affirmed a principle that remains true today: children born in the United States are entitled to the full promise of American citizenship and the opportunity to pursue the American Dream.

 

The Asian American Democrats of Texas (AADT) unequivocally condemns these latest efforts to undermine the Fourteenth Amendment and target immigrant families through fearmongering and xenophobia. For Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities, this fight is personal. We carry the legacy of the generations who fought exclusionary laws and affirmed that our citizenship is not determined by race, ancestry, or where our families come from.

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“For many in our communities, this fight is about our families, our neighbors, and the generations who fought to be recognized as fully American. Birthright citizenship represents a promise that every child born in this country deserves the same rights, dignity and opportunity as every other child.”

 

“As Asian Texans, we know that our communities are stronger because of our diversity. We have seen the harm that comes when fear and division are used to question who belongs. We will keep fighting for our families and defending the promise that America is a place where every generation can build a future."

 

Our families’ citizenship is not a political bargaining chip. Our Constitution is not optional. 

 

To those who stand against our communities and our Constitution, we will not be silent. We will organize, we will mobilize, and we will see you at the ballot box.