22 US States Push Back to Reverse Trump’s Controversial Birthright Citizenship Order
Democratic-led states and civil rights groups swiftly countered U.S. President Donald Trump’s controversial move to challenge birthright citizenship, launching multiple lawsuits on the 21st of January, 2025, in a bid to thwart his agenda in court.
Just a day after his inauguration, Trump, a Republican, issued an executive order directing U.S. agencies to deny citizenship to children born in the United States if neither parent is a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident.
In response, twenty-two Democratic-led states, joined by the District of Columbia and the city of San Francisco, filed lawsuits in federal courts in Boston and Seattle.
Their argument: Trump’s order violates the U.S. Constitution. Similarly, the American Civil Liberties Union, immigrant advocacy groups, and a pregnant woman filed two additional cases, marking the first significant legal showdown of Trump’s administration.
These lawsuits target a cornerstone of Trump’s aggressive immigration policies.
Should the order take effect, it would deny citizenship to over 150,000 children born annually in the United States, according to Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell.
“President Trump does not have the authority to take away constitutional rights,” Campbell stated unequivocally.
Without citizenship, these individuals would be excluded from vital federal programs like Medicaid and face barriers to lawful employment and voting rights, opponents argue.
“Today’s immediate lawsuit sends a clear message to the Trump administration that we will stand up for our residents and their basic constitutional rights,” said New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin, reinforcing the widespread resistance to the executive order.