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Two Citizenships: State Citizen vs. U.S. Citizen

The treatise's central claim of two distinct citizenship classes, built on Dred Scott, the Civil Rights Act of 1866, the 14th Amendment, and the Slaughter-House Cases — with the real holdings of each case.

Lesson 1 of 4 · free to read

Lesson 19 min

The Claim of Two Classes

Williams argues there are two distinct citizenships: (1) 'State citizenship' rooted in the original Constitution, and (2) 'United States citizenship' created by the 14th Amendment. This lesson states the claim plainly, then notes the mainstream legal position: the 14th Amendment made national and state citizenship overlapping for everyone born or naturalized in the U.S.

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