Thread by @marthasjones_

It was just a few days ago that the insightful ⁦@CarolJenkins⁩ asked me if I thought a threat to birthright citizenship might re-emerge. I told her the truth: I didn’t think anyone really knew the answer. Well, now we have it. reuters.com/article/us-usa…

You might ask, has anything changed since July 2018 or October 2018 when we last heard threats to birthright citizenship emanating from the President and his agents? I’ll say that I think it has.

We’ve learned is how saber rattling from Washington emboldens low level authorities to act in ways that are formally out front of a White House edict on birthright citizenship. (This is a long-standing insight — in the 1890s Wong Kim Ark was caught similarly by petty officials.)

You likely followed the case of Francisco Erwin Galicia, a US citizen by birthright who was detained for weeks by petty officials who questioned his right to be in the US and move freely about the country. beta.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/07…

Every time a street level official detains, jails or impairs the liberty of a birthright citizen, we are seeing how noise from Washington can drive everyday policy. We see how the integrity of the 14th Amendment is not being tried in high courts or Congress or in the White House.

Today the President reaffirmed a policy that is already playing out on our streets, in our communities. If this is new to you, take a moment to ask your friends, neighbors, and colleagues who are most at risk of scrutiny about how their habits have changed.

Ask Americans how they carry multiple forms of ID and lawyers phone numbers on their persons. Ask how their families have contingent plans in case of illegal detention. Ask about the places they no longer frequent, the outing they forego, the liberty they have been deprived of.

For those who imagine that this abrogation of birthright won’t reach into their lives, read this deeply insightful piece from @thrasherxy who shows how our lives are intertwined under the rule of a state that is empowered to stop citizens at will. nytimes.com/2019/08/20/opi…

Be forewarned. I will not abide snark on the question of birthright. I will not tolerate smugness. I will not sanction facile claims that the President is neither smart nor savvy. Understand: lives are being deeply troubled with this talk, whatever the Constitution might allow.