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Press Release - The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights Americans for Constitutional Citizenship Denounces Introduction of King Anti-Citizenship BillFor Immediate Release
Washington, DC –Today, Americans for Constitutional Citizenship, a diverse coalition of civil and human rights organizations dedicated to preserving the integrity of our nation’s Constitution and its guarantee of natural-born citizenship, issued the following statement in response to the Rep. Steve King’s introduction of anti American citizenship legislation: “Representative King’s bill is clearly unconstitutional and un-American. Our Constitution states unequivocally that all people born in the U.S. and under its jurisdiction are U.S. citizens entitled to equal protection under the law -- period, no exceptions. Our country went through the atrocities of slavery and the bloodiest war in its history to settle this question with the adoption of the 14th Amendment. Citizenship for all those born in the U.S. is the foundation of American identity and the cornerstone of our civil rights laws. For those reasons, our diverse coalition has come together to oppose – in the strongest possible terms – any legislation at the state or federal level that would seek to undermine the citizenship guarantee of the U.S. Constitution. Instead of debating the substantive issues at stake for our country, Rep. King has put forth a divisive and futile piece of paper that has no place being considered in the U.S. Congress. Even more disturbing is that on the same day that the House of Representatives was honoring the dignity of our Constitution by reading it on the floor, Rep. King was busy undermining it for political grandstanding. We will continue to stand for American values and oppose these frivolous political attacks on the core principles of our great democracy.” Americans for Constitutional Citizenship is a diverse coalition of civil and human rights organizations dedicated to preserving the guarantee of American citizenship for those born in the U.S. The coalition’s growing membership includes The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, ACLU, NAACP, Center for American Progress, Asian American Justice Center, Southern Poverty Law Center, the Opportunity Agenda, National Council of La Raza, LULAC, National Immigration Forum, NALEO, American Immigration Council, American Immigration Lawyers Association, MALDEF, and more. More information on the coalition can be found here. |
