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Naturalization Act
The Act provided the first rules to be followed by the United States in the granting of national citizenship. This law limited naturalization to immigrants who were "free white persons" of "good moral character". It thus, left out indentured servants, slaves, free blacks, and later Asians. -
Citizens Act
United States declares that everyone (except certain Native Americans) born in the U.S. and not subject to any foreign power is a citizen, without regard to race, color, or previous condition of slavery or involuntary servitude. -
Fourteenth Amendment
The amendment was designed to grant citizenship to and protect the civil liberties of recently freed slaves. It did this by prohibiting states from denying or abridging the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States, depriving any person of his life, liberty, or property without due process of law, or denying to any person within their jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. -
Elk v. Wilkins
The Supreme Court denied the birthright citizenship claim of an American Indian. The court ruled that being born in the territory of the United States is not sufficient for citizenship; those who wish to claim citizenship by birth must be born subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. -
United States v. Wong Kim Ark
The Supreme Court ruled that a person who is born in the United States; of parents who, at the time of his birth, are subjects of a foreign power; whose parents have a permanent domicile and residence in the United States; whose parents are there carrying on business and are not employed in any diplomatic or official capacity of the foreign power to which they are subject becomes, at the time of his birth, a citizen of the United States. -
Jones-Shafroth Act
The Puerto Ricans given citizenship in the United States. -
Snyder Act
The Act granted citizenship to indigenous people, called "Indians," in the United States. -
Child Citizenship Act of 2000
The Act provided that a non-U.S. citizen child (aged under 18) with a U.S. citizen parent, and in the custody of that parent, automatically acquired U.S. citizenship. To be eligible, a child must meet the definition of "child" for naturalization purposes under immigration law, and must also meet the following requirements:
The child has at least one United States citizen parent (by birth or naturalization)
The child is under 18 years of age
The child is currently residing permanently in the Unit -
Citizenship Day
Also known as Constitution Day, is an American federal observance that recognizes the adoption of the Constitution and those who have become citizens. -
Birthright Citizenship Act
This bill would eliminate birthright citizenship for children born to undocumented immigrants in the U.S. Current U.S. law automatically recognizes any person born on American soil as a natural born citizen. Under the bill, only children with at least one parent who is a U.S. citizen, a legal permanent resident, or an undocumented immigrant serving in the military would be considered citizens.
