The American Civil Liberties Union is using a familiar Bruce Springsteen song in a new ad campaign to support birthright citizenship in the U.S. Watch the 30-second clip below.
The advertisement arrives ahead of an April 1 hearing before the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Trump v. Barbara. The lawsuit was filed after President Trump‘s January 2025 executive order attempting to redefine the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, which automatically grants citizenship to anyone born inside the U.S.
The ACLU filed one of many lawsuits to stop Trump’s order, including others led by various governors and state attorneys general. The order was initially blocked by district courts and appeals continued until the they reached the nation’s highest court. The Supreme Court then announced in December 2025 that they would take up the ACLU case, which is being argued by their legal director Cecillia Wang.
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It all started with an interview between ACLU executive director Anthony Romero and former Good Morning America anchor Katie Couric, when Romero spontanously began singing lines from “Born in the U.S.A.” The galvanizing title song from Springsteen’s blockbuster 1984 album was a three-times platinum Top 10 smash.
“I was answering a question from Katie about one of President Trump’s executive orders on day one, in which he had the audacity to try to end birthright citizenship,” Romero tells Rolling Stone. “‘Born in the U.S.A.’ is the perfect song to capture what’s at stake in this Supreme Court case and how birthright citizenship is integral to America. … The song calls on our nation to live up to its ideals.”
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The new video features images of people of all backgrounds whose lives might be impacted by the decision. It was set to premiere on the cable-television news show Morning Joe.
“We wanted to reach folks who normally don’t hear from or pay attention to the ACLU,” Romero added. “We want people to feel proud about being born in the U.S.A.. … We want people who don’t pay attention to politics or the Supreme Court to take interest.”
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Gallery Credit: Michael Gallucci
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