United States v. Thind
1923 U.S. LEXIS 2544, 261 U.S. 204, 43 S. Ct. 338 (1923)
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Rule of Law:
The term 'free white persons' in the federal naturalization statute must be interpreted according to the common understanding of the term at the time of the statute's enactment, not by scientific or ethnological classifications. Under this 'common man' interpretation, a person of Hindu descent from India is not considered a 'white person' and is therefore ineligible for naturalization.
Facts:
- Bhagat Singh Thind was a 'high caste Hindu of full Indian blood.'
- He was born in Amrit Sar, Punjab, India.
- Thind argued that he was racially Caucasian, a classification supported by some scientific and ethnological authorities at the time.
- Based on this scientific classification, he sought to be recognized as a 'white person' eligible for U.S. citizenship.
Procedural Posture:
- Bhagat Singh Thind was granted a certificate of citizenship by the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon.
- The United States government filed a bill in equity in the same District Court, seeking to cancel the certificate of citizenship.
- The District Court, on motion, dismissed the government's bill.
- The United States, as appellant, appealed the dismissal to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
- The Circuit Court of Appeals certified two questions of law to the U.S. Supreme Court for instruction.
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Issue:
Is a high caste Hindu of full Indian blood, born in Punjab, India, a 'white person' within the meaning of Section 2169 of the Revised Statutes, making him eligible for naturalization?
Opinions:
Majority - Justice Sutherland
No. A Hindu from India is not a 'white person' within the meaning of the naturalization statute. The statutory language 'free white persons' must be interpreted based on the common understanding of the American people at the time the law was passed, not on complex or disputed scientific theories of race. While ethnologists may classify Hindus as 'Caucasian,' the common man does not, recognizing clear physical and cultural differences. The original framers of the naturalization act of 1790 intended to confer citizenship upon immigrants from Great Britain and Northwestern Europe, and this understanding of 'white' expanded to include Southern and Eastern Europeans but not Asiatics. The unmistakable difference in appearance between Hindus and Europeans means they are not 'white' in the popular sense, and therefore, Thind is ineligible for citizenship.
Analysis:
This decision, following closely after Ozawa v. United States, solidified a racially exclusionary standard for U.S. citizenship based on subjective 'common knowledge' rather than objective scientific evidence. By rejecting the scientific 'Caucasian' argument it had previously accepted in dicta, the Court established a flexible and ultimately arbitrary racial prerequisite that could be molded by popular prejudice. The ruling had a profound impact, not only barring South Asians from naturalizing but also leading to the denaturalization of those who had previously been granted citizenship, reinforcing racial barriers in American immigration and citizenship law for decades.
