Timelines

Migration is a natural part of living systems, and human history is no exception. Yet it remains one of the most debated public issues of our time.

Both people and borders move. Who is allowed to move, and who is granted rights, lies at the heart of how nations define belonging. In Germany and the United States alike, these debates have been deeply intertwined with evolving ideas of race and ethnicity.

These timelines trace how citizenship and belonging have been constructed, challenged, and redefined through laws, social movements, global events, and cultural works — and how those histories continue to shape the present.

1870

Citizenship Granted to “All Persons” Born on U.S. Soil

The Fourteenth Amendment, ratified after the Civil War, ensures equal protection under the law for all, regardless of race or parentage. The citizenship clause within the amendment, inspired by the Dred Scott decision, states that anyone born or naturalized in the U.S. is a citizen. This amendment combats past attempts by states, particularly in the South, to restrict birthright citizenship based on a parent's status, which has been deemed unconstitutional. It promotes universal birthright citizenship, reinforcing the principle of equal legal protection.

National Archives

The second page of the archived Fourteenth Amendment document that guaranteed equal protection to all U.S. citizens.

United States

Sources

Margaret Mikyung Lee. Birthright Citizenship Under the 14th Amendment of Persons Born in the United States to Alien Parents. Congressional Research Service. January 10, 2012. Date accessed: August 31, 2015.
The Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment. NALEO. Date accessed: August 31, 2015.

Additional Resources

Primary Documents in American History: 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Library of Congress. 1868. Date accessed: April 13, 2016.
Constitution of the United States. The Library of Congress / World Digital Library. 1787. Date accessed: April 13, 2016.

Related Events

1847

Dred Scott Decision Denies Citizenship to Black Americans