Haitian legislators and immigration advocates in the United States on Tuesday celebrated the US Supreme Court’s ruling rejecting President Donald Trump’s attempt to restrict birthright citizenship for Caribbean and other immigrants.
Brooklyn, New York Democratic Party Chair, Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, the daughter of Haitian immigrants, said that ‘children born in America should not have to prove they belong here because of where their parents came from, what language their family speaks, or the colour of their skin’.
‘Birthright citizenship is a constitutional right and a fundamental human right,’ Bichotte Hermelyn, who represents the 42nd Assembly District in Brooklyn, told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC). ‘No president can erase it by executive order.’
‘This fight is deeply personal: immigrants are the backbone of Brooklyn, and their children continue to help build the most diverse city in America,’ she added. However, Bichotte Hermelyn added, ‘One ruling reaffirming our rights does not end this fight. The president is attacking those rights blow by blow, including through efforts this week to revoke TPS (Temporary Protected Status) protections for Haitian and Syrian families.
‘While the Supreme Court was wrong in this week’s TPS ruling, today’s decision is a resounding rebuke. Brooklyn Democrats will keep fighting to ensure immigrant families remain safe, protected, and welcome. The president does not get to decide which children born in America count as citizens; the Constitution does,’ she continued.
The San Diego, California-based Haitian Bridge Alliance (HBA) described the Supreme Court’s decision as a victory for Haitian families and all immigrant communities.
‘The decision reaffirms the enduring promise of the 14th Amendment, which provides that ‘All persons born or naturalised in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside’,’ HBA Executive Director Guerline Jozef told CMC. ‘Today’s decision is a victory for the Constitution, the rule of law, and the millions of immigrant families who have long relied on the protections of the 14th Amendment.
‘It is also a victory for TPS recipients and other immigrant parents raising US-born children. No president has the power to erase constitutional rights or decide which children are worthy of American citizenship.
‘We commend the court for upholding one of our nation’s most fundamental constitutional guarantees and reaffirming that the Constitution cannot be rewritten by executive order,’ continued Jozef, stating that HBA ‘remains committed to defending the constitutional rights of all immigrant communities and will continue advocating for permanent legislative protections that keep families together and uphold equal justice under the law.’
During a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, led by New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC), Make the Road New York (MRNY) and Hands off NYC, dozens of community leaders, immigration advocates and allies also celebrated the Supreme Court’s decision to preserve birthright citizenship for all people born in the US.
Murad Awawdeh, president and CEO of NYIC, an umbrella advocacy organisation of over 200 immigrant and refugee groups in the US, said that the court’s ruling comes as a relief for the immigrant community, who have been waiting anxiously over the past year.
‘This is a monumental victory for immigrant families and upholds a constitutional principle that has defined the country for more than a century,’ he said. ‘Today’s Supreme Court decision is a victory for the Constitution, the rule of law, and the generations of families who have built their lives in this country.
‘As our nation marks its 250th birthday, the Supreme Court reaffirmed what has been clear for more than 150 years: the 14th Amendment guarantees birthright citizenship, and no president can rewrite the Constitution with the stroke of a pen,’ he added. ‘Donald Trump’s attempt to end birthright citizenship was both an unprecedented attempt to advance his anti-immigrant agenda and part of a broader effort to dismantle legal pathways to safety, stability, and belonging.
‘We celebrate today’s reaffirmation of one of our nation’s most enduring Constitutional guarantees, but we must not forget that just last week the court’s decisions on Temporary Protected Status and asylum at the border have left hundreds of thousands of families facing uncertainty and have given the administration an undue authority to dismantle humanitarian protections that allow people fleeing violence, disaster and uncertainty to live and work lawfully in the United States,’ Awawdeh warned.
‘Even as we breathe a sigh of relief, Congress must act to create a pathway to citizenship for all immigrants and strengthen the humanitarian protections that reflect our values,’ he continued.
During the press conference, attorneys provided an overview of the Supreme Court’s decision, and community leaders spoke about the importance of protecting birthright citizenship for every child born in the United States, regardless of where their parents were born.
In 2025, the Trump administration issued an executive order attempting to strip children of Caribbean and other countries born in the United States of birthright citizenship.
Following this, advocates filed a legal challenge against the executive order. In April 2026, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for the case.
‘Last year, I was pregnant when President Trump signed an executive order attempting to take away birthright citizenship. Birthright citizenship is a fundamental right of every child born in this country,’ said Aby, a Deferred Action for Early Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, recipient and MRNY member, who prefers that her last name not be used.
‘Every day since that executive order was signed until the day I gave birth, I wondered if my newborn would be considered a US citizen or what would happen to him. What would his birth certificate say? What country would he belong to?’ she asked. ‘My three children, from my oldest to my youngest, are US-born and US citizens. This country is my home and the home of my children.’
New York State Assemblymember Catalina Cruz said that the Supreme Court ‘ruled on something that should have never been in question, rightly upholding the 14th Amendment and confirming that birthright citizenship is, and remains, the law of this land.
‘For over 150 years, this country has recognised a simple truth: if you are born in America, you are an American citizen,’ she said. ‘Today’s ruling reflects and protects that truth for the hundreds of thousands of children born every year in our country, regardless of where their parents come from. This was never just a constitutional argument; it was a battle for the basic human rights and decency for those who have no say in how they come into this world.
‘We celebrate this victory, but we know the fight to protect immigrant families is far from over,’ Cruz cautioned.
New York Attorney General Letitia James, who has strongly defended birthright citizenship, said: ‘Our country was built by immigrants, and we draw our strength from those who come here seeking a better life. Today’s ruling preserves that promise for generations to come.
‘I am relieved for the children who will never know how close the American dream came to being taken from them, and for the families who will never have to explain to a child why the country they were born in refuses to accept them.’