Birth Certificate

For many Americans, the birth certificate is a mundane piece of paper, unearthed from deep storage when applying for a drivers license, verifying information for new employers, or claiming state and federal benefits. Yet as Donald Trump and his fellow birthers reminded us when they claimed that Barack Obama wasnt an American citizen, it plays a central role in determining identity and citizenship.InThe Birth Certificate: An American History, award-winning historian Susan J. Pearson traces the documents two-hundred-year history to explain when, how, and why birth certificates came to matter so much in the United States. Deftly weaving together social, political, and legal history,The Birth Certificateis a fascinating biography of a piece of paper that grounds our understanding of how those who live in the United States are considered Americans.