The 14th Amendment is a cornerstone of civil rights, written to ensure that ALL persons within the nation's borders are granted equal protection under the law.
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Ratified on July 9, 1868, the 14th Amendment was born out of the period following the Civil War, when the nation was grappling with the remnants of slavery. Alongside the 13th and 15th Amendments, it forms part of what are known as the Reconstruction Amendments. These amendments collectively abolished slavery, defined citizenship, and laid down the legal foundation for racial equality.
Amendment XIV
Section 1.
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. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
Section 2.
Representatives shall be apportioned among the several states according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each state, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the executive and judicial officers of a state, or the members of the legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such state, being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such state.
Section 3.
No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any state, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any state legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any state, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may, by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.
Section 4.
The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any state shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations, and claims shall be held illegal and void.
Section 5.
The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.
The 14th Amendment comprises five sections, with the first section being the most profound. It confers citizenship to "all persons born or naturalized in the United States," thereby granting formerly enslaved individuals the full rights of citizenship. This was a direct response to the infamous Dred Scott decision of 1857, where the Supreme Court had ruled that African Americans could not be citizens.
Notice that the wording is “all persons born…,” which means even the children of undocumented immigrants are conferred citizenship.
Furthermore, the Equal Protection Clause mandates that no state shall deny any person "the equal protection of the laws." This clause has become a critical tool in the fight against discrimination. Over the years, it has served as the foundation for landmark Supreme Court decisions that have expanded civil rights across various fronts, including race, gender, and sexual orientation.
The 14th Amendment states ALL persons have equal protection under the law, not just the people you like. This includes undocumented immigrants and LGBTQA+ people.
Section 3 states that no person who was part of an insurrection can run for office. Several states kept Donald Trump off their ballots due to this section of the 14th Amendment, but some courts ruled that this section of the 14th Amendment did not apply to Donald Trump.
The 14th Amendment was instrumental in the Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education (1954), which ended legal segregation in public schools. Additionally, it underpinned the Court's ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.
Despite its significance, the 14th Amendment has not been without controversy. Its broad language leaves room for interpretation, prompting debates over issues such as affirmative action, voting rights, and immigration.
Moreover, while the 14th Amendment guarantees equal protection, realizing this protection in practice remains a struggle. Persistent social and economic inequalities underscore the disparity between the amendment's promise and its reality.
Our Choice:
We must continue to champion the 14th Amendment's vision, striving towards a future where the rights and privileges of citizenship are enjoyed by all, without discrimination.
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