Ava DuVernay Explores the 14th Amendment in New Documentary for Netflix

Ava DuVernay has announced a new documentary for Netflix focused on the 14th Amendment. This amendment granted freedom and rights to former enslaved people following the Civil War. Currently, it faces legal challenges from former President Donald Trump. Netflix plans to release the documentary, titled “14th,” later this year.

DuVernay, known for her films “Selma” and “Origin,” returns to nonfiction filmmaking with this project. It follows her 2016 film “13th,” which explored the legacy of the 13th Amendment that abolished slavery. In her statement, DuVernay describes the 14th Amendment as “a permanent argument.” The film will include insights from politicians, historians, and cultural figures. DuVernay emphasized that the film asks contemporary questions about citizenship and identity.

If ‘13th’ asked who gets caged, then ‘14th’ asks who gets counted,” DuVernay stated.

Ratified in 1868 during Reconstruction, the 14th Amendment states that all persons born or naturalized in the United States are American citizens. It overturned the 1857 Supreme Court decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford, which denied citizenship to descendants of enslaved people.

Recently, former President Trump targeted the 14th Amendment, attempting to limit birthright citizenship. On his second term’s first day, he signed an executive order for such restrictions. However, the Supreme Court overturned this order with a 6-3 vote. Chief Justice John Roberts, in his decision, highlighted the importance of citizenship as the right to participate freely in the political community. He affirmed that the 14th Amendment extends this right to “every free-born person in this land.”

Despite the ruling, Trump vowed to contest the decision. He argued that the ruling could harm the United States, labeling it “absolutely insane.”