The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc. (CLINIC) have expressed support for a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s executive order that seeks to limit birthright citizenship. The case, Trump v. Barbara, is scheduled for oral argument on April 1.
President Trump signed the executive order shortly after returning to office in January 2025. The order aims to change the established interpretation of the 14th Amendment, which states that “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.” Specifically, it would end birthright citizenship for children born in the U.S. to parents without legal status or those holding temporary visas.
Following this move, lawsuits were filed against the executive order. While the Supreme Court has restricted federal judges from issuing nationwide injunctions during ongoing litigation over the policy, it has not yet addressed whether the order itself is constitutional.
Numerous amicus briefs—documents submitted by non-parties with an interest in a case—have been filed both supporting and opposing Trump’s order. One such brief was submitted by the U.S. bishops and CLINIC.
In their brief, they wrote: “motivated by the teachings of the Catholic Church,” including “the central belief that every person is imbued with an inviolable dignity, and that all human life, created in the image and likeness of God, is sacred.”
“It is through this lens that the Church stands for ‘treating people humanely, treating people with the dignity that they have,'” according to comments cited from Pope Leo XIV at Castel Gandolfo on November 18, 2025. “These teachings extend to immigrants in the United States without legal status and their American children who were born in the United States.”
“Not only is the principle of birthright citizenship woven into our Nation’s history and Western tradition, but it is also consistent with Catholic teaching,” their brief continued. “Birthright citizenship aligns with the Church’s teaching that humans were created as social beings and that political authority is morally bound to affirm and protect the inherent dignity of every human person in the community. In turn, birthright citizenship reflects the Catholic principle of subsidiarity by recognizing persons as members of the community from birth, thereby enabling their participation in civic life and ensuring that state power serves the human person as a social being.”
The bishops’ brief concluded: “ending birthright citizenship lacks historical, legal, and moral support.”
“The principle of citizenship by birth is firmly rooted in Western legal tradition, enshrined in the Fourteenth Amendment, and reaffirmed by this Court’s precedent,” it said. “It is equally grounded in Church teachings, which affirms the inherent dignity of every human person, especially the innocent child.”
“As Catholics, our faith compels us to protest laws that deny the dignity of the human person and harm innocent children, particularly when such laws resurrect the very injustices the Fourteenth Amendment was enacted to repudiate,” it added. “At its core, this case is not solely a question about citizenship status or the Fourteenth Amendment. It is a question of whether the law will affirm or deny the equal worth of those born within our common community — whether the law will protect the human dignity of all God’s children.”
A brief supporting Trump’s executive order was filed by America First Policy Institute (AFPI), which argued: “both Executive and Legislative branches have broad constitutional authority over matters of immigration and foreign relations and have extensive powers related to national defense and sovereignty.” AFPI stated: “Accordingly, AFPI believes that each branch has power and duty to end birthright citizenship for children of illegal aliens, alien tourists, and aliens in U.S. legally but temporarily.”
Other groups submitting amicus briefs include members of Congress; state attorneys general; legal organizations; immigration policy groups; as well as professors Evan D. Bernick and Jed H. Shugerman who described themselves as originalist scholars. Their brief noted: “For nearly all of first 235 years under Constitution…the citizenship of every child born in United States to alien parents…was a given. Then…in 2025…the Trump administration changed course.”
Catholic social teaching on immigration emphasizes three principles: individuals’ right to migrate for survival; nations’ right to regulate borders; and countries’ obligation to manage borders justly.
