DENVER: Whether people who live in territories controlled by the U.S. automatically become citizens under a constitutional amendment that secured citizenship for freed slaves was a major focus of arguments Wednesday in a federal appeals court in Denver in a case seeking citizenship rights for residents of American Samoa.
American Samoa, a cluster of islands some 2,600 miles (4,184 kilometers) southwest of Hawaii, is the only U.S. territory where residents have no birthright claim to citizenship.
Instead, they are granted U.S. national status, meaning they cant vote for U.S. president, run for office outside American Samoa or apply for certain jobs. The only federal election they can cast a vote in is the race for American Samoas nonvoting U.S. House seat.
In December, a federal judge in Utah ruled in favor of three…