Race/Related: He won birthright citizenship for all. His own family never knew.
Wong Kim Ark won his court case in 1898. Some of his descendants learned of him only 15 years ago.
Race/Related
April 3, 2026

Sandra Wong was at her father’s funeral when she saw a newspaper clipping and learned something surprising: She was a direct descendant of Wong Kim Ark, a cook in San Francisco who was behind the landmark 1898 Supreme Court decision granting citizenship to virtually anyone born on American soil.

Sandra Wong stands next to Norman Wong, who is sitting at a wooden table.

Minh Connors for The New York Times

Read more on the family behind birthright citizenship here. →

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