August 19, 2008 9:34 AM
Henry Cejudo, the son of undocumented Mexican immigrants, won the Olympic gold medal in Freestyle Wrestling today. He was the first American to win gold in his event in 16 years. According to the L.A. Times, Cejudo was ecstatic:
"This is the American dream," said a joyful Cejudo, still wrapped in the U.S. flag. "The United States is the greatest country in the world."
Cejudo is part of a group that anti-immigrant politicians refer to as "Anchor Babies". These are the U.S.-born children of undocumented immigrants. Now under the U.S. Constitution (14th Amendment) they are U.S. citizens, but folks like Steve Levy like to denigrate these Americans as something less than true citizens.
Whenever you hear the term "Anchor Baby" used, be assured that the person using it wants to call into question not only the legal status of Latino immigrants, but also the status of their children.
Wikipedia has an interesting article on the political use of the derogatory term "Anchor Baby".