"Victory Remains": Wong Kim Ark's Family on Birthright Citizenship Ruling

The family of Wong Kim Ark, the man whose 1898 Supreme Court case established birthright citizenship as the law of the land, marked Tuesday’s decision upholding that right as vindication of a struggle that began 128 years ago.

“My great grandfather, Wong Kim Ark, never set out to become a symbol,” Norman Wong, 76, a retired carpenter, said in a statement to Newsweek. “He was one man, only a cook, and yet he stood up for what was right, and I believe that it has made a difference.”

“As a result, he stood up for the rights of all of us Americans – it just so happens that I am related to him,” Wong said. “Today’s ruling shows that his victory remains as important now as it was in 1898.”

The Supreme Court rejected President Donald Trump’s executive order denying citizenship to children born to people in the country illegally or temporarily, relying fundamentally on Wong’s case as precedent. Wong Kim Ark, born in San Francisco in 1873 to Chinese immigrants, was denied re-entry upon his return from visiting family in China and challenged that denial, winning in the Supreme Court by a 6-to-2 vote.

“I hope America gets this thing right,” Wong told Reuters in early April.

This is a breaking news story. Updates will follow.

Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Dan Gooding.

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This story was originally published June 30, 2026 at 8:46 AM.