Before 2013, it was fairly easy for immigrant parents-both legal and illegal-to obtain a birth certificate for a child born in the U.S.
That changed. For some reason-no one is admitting anything but it was likely a move to discourage so-called "anchor babies" born to illegal aliens-Texas stopped accepting certain forms of identification easily available to immigrants, such as identity cards issued by consulates of their native countries or foreign voter ID cards.
Just over a year ago, four women-all illegal immigrants-filed a lawsuit against the Texas Department of State Health Services, charging their children were being denied their rights as U.S. citizens. Soon more than 25 other families joined the litigation.
On Monday, the state caved and settled the suit. Now the state will again accept consular ID cards, voter ID cards from Mexico and other documents issued by foreign countries.
Illegal immigration is a volatile issue. Many have very, very strong feelings about it. We understand that.
We believe the border should be protected and that immigration laws should be enforced.
But we also believe it is wrong to punish innocent children for the crimes of their parents.
Like it or not, children born on U.S. soil are American citizens. That's part of the U.S. Constitution. Some think the 14th Amendment, which states, "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," should itself be amended.
But it hasn't been. A birth certificate is essential if a child is to enjoy the rights and opportunities that come from being a citizen. Thus, Texas did the right thing in settling the suit.
All 254 county clerks in Texas will be required to comply. That doesn't mean they all will. We may see some incidents reminiscent of Kim Davis' refusal to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples in her Kentucky county.
We hope not. We are talking about children here. Innocent children who are citizens of this country. And we should put their rights above personal political views.