United States v. Wong Kim Ark

The Court held that a child born in the United States to Chinese parents lawfully living there is a citizen by birth under the Fourteenth Amendment.

Overview

Wong Kim Ark was born in San Francisco in 1873 to Chinese immigrant parents who could not themselves naturalize under the Chinese Exclusion laws. Returning from a visit to China in 1895, he was refused entry on the ground that he was not a citizen. Justice Horace Gray, writing for a 6-2 majority, traced the citizenship clause to the English common law rule of birthright citizenship and held that it covers children born on American soil to foreign nationals, subject only to narrow exceptions such as children of diplomats. The decision remains the leading authority on birthright citizenship and continues to anchor debates over its scope.