{UAH} Editorial: The problem of dual citizenship

Yet dual citizenship has been specifically sanctioned by the United States Supreme Court. In 1967, the court ruled that the State Department had violated the Constitution when it refused to issue a new U.S. passport to a U.S. citizen who had voted in an election in Israel. The decision overturned a law saying that "a person, who is a national of the United States, whether by birth or naturalization, shall lose his nationality by voting in a political election in a foreign state."

But the concept of dual citizenship is problematic both symbolically and practically, and could become divisive if more immigrants decide to avail themselves of the privileges of U.S. citizens — as we believe they ought to do. U.S citizens with strong ties to their ancestral countries have been accused of divided loyalties in the past even when they didn't possess citizenship in those countries — witness the internment of 110,000 Japanese and Japanese Americans during World War II. But when a U.S. citizen is also a citizen of another country, the accusation is even easier to make.

But it's also true that dual citizenship undermines the common bond that unites U.S. citizens regardless of their ethnicity, religion or place of birth. Dual citizenship places a sort of asterisk next to the names of some U.S. citizens but not others.

Nations vary in their attitudes toward dual citizenship. Some reject the concept outright; others allow their citizens to take out a second citizenship only in selected countries and some have drawn a distinction between citizenship and nationality.

In questioning dual citizenship, we aren't saying that immigrants must forget their countries of birth or repudiate their language or culture. In large parts of the southwestern United States, U.S. citizens of Mexican descent frequently travel back and forth between the two countries, enriching the cultures and economies of both countries. Rather, we believe that citizenship in this country should be an expression of allegiance to it, enforced not by a pledge but rather by a desire to be part of this country. Dual citizenship may have a place in American society, but the goal should be the cultivation of undivided Americans, proud of their heritage and committed to this nation.

This is part of an ongoing conversation exploring the meaning of citizenship in America today. For more, join us at latimes.com/citizenship and #21stCenturyCitizen. We'd love to hear from you. Share your thoughts, rebuttals and experiences with us atletters@latimes.com. 

http://www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-dual-citizenship-20141228-story.html

Brian M. Kwesiga

President and CEO,

Ugandan North American Association - UNAA

972.415.6372 | www.unaa.org | "United We Stand"