Selective Citizenship

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I wrote last week about the plight of Meriam Ibrahim, who has been sentenced to death in Sudan for adultery and apostasy. Ibrahim has two children who languish in jail with her and await her death; their fate is uncertain after her execution. What is certain is that the Sudanese government will not give the children to their biological father because he is a Christian and not a Muslim. Daniel Wani, an uncontroverted U.S. citizen (has dual citizenship), has lived in the U.S. since 2005 and wants his children; he is crying out for the right to parent them and bring them home to the U.S. The United States State Department has done very little to help.

This is not a complicated issue, which raises larger questions about the motives of this Obama administration. Sec. 301. [8 U.S.C. 1401] which states, in part, the following shall be nationals and citizens of the United States at birth: (g) a person born outside the geographical limits of the United States and its outlying possessions of parents, one of whom is an alien, and the other a citizen of the United States who, prior to the birth of such person, was physically present in the United States or its outlying possessions for a period or periods totaling not less than five years, at least two of which were after attaining the age of fourteen years. Under this U.S. law, Wani’s children (Martin, 20 months old, and newborn Maya) are clearly U.S. citizens.

Under U.S. law, children born to a husband and wife are presumed to be children of the union. DNA is not required to establish paternity but is presumed. Here, the opposite appears to be the case. Paternity is not presumed but rather must be proven. The State Department is requiring evidence of paternity, typically reserved for children born to an unmarried couple. This genetic testing process has proven onerous for his family.

Instead, it seems the State Department is deferring to Islamic-based Shariah Law which simply does not recognize the marriage at all – thus the DNA testing to prove parentage. Meanwhile, Martin and Maya’s obvious status is being denied and they suffer daily.

It’s not enough that the U.S. welcomes thousands of illegal immigrants across our borders daily who do not belong in the U.S.; it’s not enough that in 2010 the Obama Justice Department sued the State of Arizona for enforcing its own federal immigration laws so that the influx of illegal immigrants would go unabated; it’s not enough that the president passed a version of the Dream Act through Homeland Security in 2012 that makes illegal immigrants under 30 years old who have been in the U.S. since they were 16 and have lived in the U.S. for at least 5 years eligible for deferred action which amounts to a suspension of deportation. This group would then be eligible for work permits. It’s not as if this Obama administration is hard on illegal immigration.

To bend over backwards to deny entry by U.S. citizens whose mother is being executed for being a Christian is simply inexplicable. Might this administration be Islamic sympathizers afraid to clash with the implementation of Shariah Law against U.S. citizens? It is a sad day when the State Department abdicates its essential role to protect Americans abroad and leaves Americans and children in particular in harm’s way when their status as citizens is not even a close call. This cannot stand in America!

Marc Little is the author of The Prodigal Republican: Faith and Politics. His web site is The Prodigal Republican.