Many people say, “As long as I have U.S. citizenship, nothing else matters.” What’s often overlooked is that not all U.S. citizenship is equal under the law.

Puerto Ricans did not receive citizenship through the 14th Amendment. Our citizenship was granted by Congress through statute in 1917. That legal difference matters because Congress retains authority over Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory where the Constitution does not fully apply.

This is why Puerto Ricans cannot vote for President and have no voting representation in Congress. A person born in a U.S. state has constitutional citizenship; a person born in Puerto Rico has statutory citizenship.

That distinction is not opinion—it is settled law ...