TIRRC Condemns Tennessee AG's Racist Attack on Birthright Citizenship "This isn't a legal debate—it's a discriminatory attempt to redefine America in their own exclusionary image"
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October 24, 2025
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TIRRC Condemns Tennessee AG's Racist Attack on Birthright Citizenship
"This isn't a legal debate—it's a discriminatory attempt to redefine America in their own exclusionary image"
NASHVILLE— After news broke that Tennessee’s Attorney General, Jonathan Skrmetti, filed an amicus brief signing on to President Trump’s legal challenge to birthright citizenship in the 14th Amendment, Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition released the following statement strongly condemning not only the amicus brief, but the motives of Tennessee and other Attorneys General across the country.
“For more than 125 years, the 14th Amendment has been clear: if you are born on American soil, you are an American citizen,” stated Lisa Sherman Luna, Executive Director of Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition.” This constitutional protection was won through the blood and struggle of Black Americans fighting for freedom and equality after slavery. Now, Tennessee's Attorney General wants to erase that protection, not for all Americans, but specifically for the children of immigrants, particularly immigrants of color.
“This is about race. This is about class. This is about power. When wealthy white families have children born in the United States, no one questions their citizenship. But when working-class immigrant families, largely Black, Brown, and Asian, have children born here, suddenly these AGs claim the Constitution needs ‘reinterpreting.’ This double standard exposes the racist foundation of their entire legal crusade.
“Tennessee's participation in this attack is a betrayal of our state's values and our communities. Immigrant families are the backbone of Tennessee: we pay taxes, start businesses, attend churches, work in healthcare, agriculture, hospitality, business, and at schools, while also caring for our families. We are Tennesseans. And our children, born on Tennessee soil, are Americans no matter what the Attorney General wants to argue in court.
“This isn't about legal interpretation. It's about who gets to belong. It's about powerful politicians trying to shrink the definition of ‘American’ to exclude anyone who doesn't look like them, speak like them, or come from where they came from. It's an attempt to create a hierarchy of citizenship based on the country of origin and skin color of your parents, the very discrimination the 14th Amendment was designed to prevent.
“Every lower court that has reviewed Trump's executive order has struck it down as unconstitutional. The law is clear. But Tennessee's Attorney General would rather waste taxpayer dollars defending racism than protecting Tennessee families.
“We condemn this racist attack on our communities in the strongest terms. Birthright citizenship is not up for debate. The 14th Amendment is settled law. And Tennessee's children all of them deserve to grow up secure in their citizenship and their belonging.
“Tennessee's Attorney General does not speak for us. We are Tennessee. Our children are American. And we will fight to protect both.”