Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Nick Rosa
Prof. Talarico
Eng. 100
May 11, 2015
Immigration
America has been a country with open doors since its establishment 1776,
making it one of the most diverse countries in the world. It is this diversity and
acceptance of people of any color or creed that has made America what it is today. The
14th amendment gives citizenship to All persons born or naturalized in the United
States, and any change to this would have a drastic effect on immigrants across the
country and potentially change what it means to be an American. In the essay The
Case for Birthright Citizenship by Linda Chavez she discusses how birthright
citizenship has had a huge impact on the United States and why it should stay the
same. Those who do not support birthright citizenship state that the 14 th amendment
was originally intended to guarantee citizenship to freed slaves, not to the offspring of
illegal immigrants. Although this statement is technically true, it also important to note
that at that time there was no illegal immigrants because immigration was not
regulated. People were free to enter the country, start a family and naturalize if inclined.
A significant reason as to why the United States is such a great country is the broad
view of who is or isnt an American. Freeman suggests that we continue to keep that
expansive view and instead of ratifying the 14 th amendment we help them (anchor
babies) become good Americans.
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