Do Anchor Babies have the Right to Dock on U.S. Land?
Jamie Rogers
Work Force Diversity
Mr. McDonald
February 12, 2009

Do Anchor Babies have the Right to Dock on U.S. Land?

It is well known that a person born in the United States is an automatic citizen regardless of the mother's citizenship status. However, the United States is unusual in its offer of citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil. Only a few European countries still grant automatic citizenship at birth. The United Kingdom and Australia repealed their U.S. style policy in the 1980s after witnessing abuses similar to those plaguing the U.S. today. Why does the United States continue to allow a practice subject to widespread fraud? The answer lies in how American jurisprudence has interpreted the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. Babies born to illegal alien mothers within U.S. borders are called anchor babies because under the 1965 immigration Act, they act as an anchor that pulls the illegal alien mother and eventually a host of other relatives into permanent U.S. residency. Jackpot babies are another term. The 14th Amendment was ratified in 1868 to protect the rights of native-born Black Americans, whose rights were being denied as recently-freed slaves. In 1866, Senator Jacob Howard clearly spelled out the intent of the 14th Amendment by writing: "Every person born within the limits of the United States, and subject to their jurisdiction, is by virtue of natural law and national law a citizen of the United States. This will not, of course, include persons born in the United States who are foreigners, aliens, who belong to the families of ambassadors or foreign ministers accredited to the Government of the United States, but will include every other class of persons. It settles the great question of citizenship and removes all doubt as to what persons are or are not citizens of the United States. This has long been a great desideratum in the jurisprudence and legislation of this country."
The original intent of the 14th Amendment was clearly not to facilitate illegal aliens defying U.S. law at taxpayer expense. Current estimates indicate there may be over 300,000 anchor babies born each year in the U.S., thus causing illegal alien mothers to add more to the U.S. population each year than immigration from all sources in an average year before 1965. The correct interpretation of the 14th Amendment is that an illegal alien mother is subject to the jurisdiction of her native country, as is her baby. Let’s raise the question how did all this get started? In post Civil War America, politicians wanted to amend the Constitution to address injustices to the black slaves. The 14th Amendment was intended to provide citizenship to those that had endured slavery. The Amendment states in part, "all persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citizens of the United States" Unfortunately too many self serving politicians and advocates for illegal immigrants ignore an important phrase in the Amendment. To understand the correct interpretation of the 14th Amendment we need to understand what the co-author of the amendment wrote about the Amendment. In 1866, Senator Jacob Howard wrote, "This will not, of course, include persons born in the United States who are foreigners, aliens, who belong to the families of ambassadors, or foreign ministers accredited to the Government of the United States, but will include every other class of persons." Senator Howard wrote the addition phrase specifically because he wanted to make it clear that the simple accident of birth in the US is not sufficient to justify citizenship. (29- Hernando Today) Whenever immigration is discussed, advocates of immigration make the claim that immigrants actually aid the US economy. While that claim can be debated, nobody can claim that "anchor babies" provide a boost to the US economy. Anchor babies are babies of immigrants that are born in the US. Based on a misinterpretation of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, these babies are granted immediate U.S. citizenship. Some parents come legally as temporary visitors but others enter illegally. In either case anchor babies are granted immediate US citizenship. Immigration officials seldom initiate deportation proceedings against illegal aliens with anchor babies, so they simply remain here illegally. Since anchor babies are considered citizens they instantly qualify for public welfare which means they gain access to free medical care, schools, housing, food stamps, and all the other benefits of our welfare state. While the anchor babies do not provide immediate citizenship to the alien family, they do provide an anchor for that family - hence the name anchor baby.
Granting automatic birthright citizenship is a huge magnet that attracts immigrants from all over the world. It is estimated that roughly 10 percent of births in the United States are babies born to immigrants. The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act of 1985 require that hospitals and doctors treat the uninsured mother and baby without reimbursement. Anchor babies are United States citizens from the moment they’re born, and they instantly qualify for public welfare aid. And over 300,000 anchor babies become citizens each year in the United States thanks to the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and the State wherein they reside." Research shows that anchor babies generate $1000 per month in public welfare funding for the family; the premature baby gets $600 a month for asthma, and the healthy baby gets $400. The average anchor baby family earned $18,000 last year for picking fruit, and the government gave them another $12,000 for their two anchor babies. Most illegal aliens do not have medical insurance. But lack of medical insurance doesn’t mean they don’t get medical care when they need it. Because of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act of 1985, hospital emergency rooms are required by law to treat uninsured people without reimbursement whether or not they have insurance. Studies shows that, Anchor babies born to illegal aliens instantly qualify as citizens for welfare benefits and have caused enormous rises in Medicaid costs and stipends under Supplemental Security Income and Disability Income. Although many Americans say that the United States benefits from the cheap labor that comes from south of the border, the increasing number of illegal aliens entering the country carries many hidden costs to our economy, such as uninsured medical costs and government support funds. Such costs are not only forcing the closure of hospitals and threatening to destroy the entire health care system of America, they are also risking the lives of Americans by bringing into the United States diseases for which no cure exists. People who emigrate to the U.S. legally are required to demonstrate that they are free of communicable diseases and drug addiction if they want to qualify for lawful permanent residency green cards. Illegal aliens only have to cross the border and have a baby, without any medical examination, and everyone in the family is automatically a United States citizen.
Despite the overwhelming problems illegal aliens are causing to our society, numerous organizations have been established to direct illegal immigrants into our medical systems and help them obtain free medical services. The National Immigration Law Center, American Immigration Lawyers Association, National Network for Immigration and Refugee Rights all work to establish and support rights for illegal aliens, even though aliens aren’t even citizens of the United States and therefore should not be entitled to the same rights the rest of us enjoy.

Reference

Gabbard, Stephany. Anchor Babies - Born In the USA. July 9, 2004 www.rense.com/general54/anchorbabiesborn.htm - 20k
Reiniers, John. Anchor Babies. Hernando Today, p.29 January 25, 2008
Smith, Craig. More Immigration Folly. Jun 19, 2002 projectusa.org/2002/06/19/anchor-babies-more-immigration-folly/ - 70k -