For hours, protesters stood outside the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. as justices heard oral arguments in a case involving birthright citizenship on May 15.
Right now, the Constitution guarantees citizenship to anyone born in the U.S. — and that includes children of undocumented immigrants. But President Donald Trump has pushed to end that constitutional right.
Ama Frimpong is the legal director for CASA, one of the parties in the case.
“Black and brown families are under attack,” Frimpong said. “This administration is doing everything that it can to strip us of protections that we have had for a long period of time. We are here to say we will not let that happen. We will fight back, and we will win.”
CASA is a national organization that provides services to immigrants and their families.

An individual holds a sign that reads “The Trump Fascist Regime Must Go Now!!!” outside the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, May 15, 2025. The justices heard oral arguments in a case involving birthright citizenship. (Ashley N. Soriano)
The focus of Thursday’s arguments: whether lower courts can block the president’s executive order, one that argues the 14th Amendment doesn’t automatically apply to everyone born in the U.S.
“If they [Supreme Court justices] go the opposite way from what we want them to, then it’ll do great damage to the 14th Amendment,” said Connecticut Attorney General William Tong.
If the 14th Amendment didn’t exist, he says he wouldn’t be an American citizen.
“I’m a birthright citizen. I derive my citizenship on the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution, like many children of immigrants,” Tong said.
Alex Vasquez, one of the protesters and the organizing director of CASA Maryland, came to the U.S. from Mexico with his parents as a child. His family will welcome a new member soon.
“My sister is actually about to have her first born who would technically be a naturalized citizen here in just a few weeks. And so, I think the impact for many of us who do this work is really understanding that a lot of people come to this country having to navigate a cruel immigration system,” Vasquez said. “But still choosing to move forward here, establishing a new family, establishing a new generation of children who are born here, and for us, it’s personal.”