immigrant rights, the constitution, and equality in America
Victor C. Romero.
New York
New York University Press
2005
xiv, 261 pages ; 24 cm.
Critical America.
Equality for all as a constitutional mandate (noncitizens included!) --; Immigrants and the war on terrorism after 9/11 --; Automatic citizens, automatic deportees : parents, children, and crimes --; Building the floor : preserving the Fourth Amendment rights of undocumented migrants --; Hitting the ceiling : the right to a college education --; A peek into the future? : same-gender partners and immigration law --; The equal noncitizen : alternatives in theory and practice.
Throughout American history, the government has used U.S. citizenship and immigration law to protect privileged groups from less privileged ones, using citizenship as a legitimate" proxy for otherwise invidious - and often unconstitutional - discrimination on the basis of race. While racial discrimination is rarely legally acceptable today, profiling on the basis of citizenship is still largely unchecked, and has arguably increased in the wake of the September 11 terror attacks on the United States. In this thoughtful examination of the intersection between American immigration and constitutional law, Victor C. Romero draws our attention to a "constitutional immigration law paradox" that reserves certain rights for U.S. citizens only, while simultaneously purporting to treat all people fairly under constitutional law regardless of citizenship."--Jacket.
Constitutional law -- United States.
Emigration and immigration law -- United States.
Émigration et immigration -- Droit -- États-Unis.