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The constitution was signed into law on September 17, 1787. Originally the constitution had no clear rules on what citizenry meant for individuals. Writing for an article for constitutioncenter.org titled "The Citizenship Clause" Akhil Reed Amar and John C. Harrison write "Nowhere, however, does the original Constitution lay down a clear and comprehensive rule about either kind of citizenship." The authors were speaking about state and national citizenship. -
On March 3rd, 1857 the Supreme Court ruled against Dred Scott. Claiming that enslaved people were not citizens of the United States and were offered no protection under the federal government. -
On April 9th, 1866 the Civil Rights Act of 1866 was ratified by the House of Representatives. The act declares that all born in the United States are citizens "without distinction of race or color, or previous condition of slavery or involuntary servitude." Although the act invalidated the Dred Scott v. Sanford case of 1857, it did not grant political rights. -
On July 9th, 1868 congress ratified the 14th amendment. The amendment included what is called "The Citizenship clause" which says "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside." (1.2 Citizenship Clause Doctrine. Fourteenth Amendment, Section 1)