Pregnant illegal immigrants sue Trump over birthright citizenship

The order, titled "Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship," would end automatic US citizenship to children born in the country unless at least one parent is a US citizen or a lawful permanent resident. The order also applies to children born to parents on temporary visas, such as H-1B work visas or F-1 student visas.

The lawsuit, which was filed in a Maryland federal court in January, argues that Trump's order is unconstitutional, violating the Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment. This clause 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."

The lawsuit is backed by immigrant advocacy groups Casa, Inc. and the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project, which labeled the executive order as “blatantly unconstitutional.”

On Friday, the Department of Justice filed an opposition motion against the women, defending the order as "common sense."

One of the plaintiffs, identified as "Monica," is a Venezuelan-born medical doctor currently living in South Carolina under temporary protected status. She is due in August and fears her child could be left stateless, as Venezuela lacks a consulate in the U.S. where she could apply for citizenship for her baby. "There is no Venezuelan Consulate in the United States where I could even apply for Venezuelan citizenship for my baby, and we would have to travel outside of the U.S. in order to obtain a Venezuelan passport for our child," Monica wrote in her declaration to the court.

She expressed her disbelief at the order, telling the Guardian: "I was very shocked. This is a right that is in the constitution of this country—so you cannot imagine that they would take it away just because."

Fearing retaliation, including potential deportation, Monica and the four other women involved in the lawsuit have chosen to withhold their full names in the court filings.