Few Americans knew of Norman Wong, a 75-year-old retired carpenter living quietly in Brentwood, California, until a presidential executive order transformed him into an unlikely symbol of a new national battle over a core constitutional issue: who is an American?

His face has appeared across major American news organizations in recent days. When the South China Morning Post interviewed Wong via video, a television crew was en route to his home, and a calendar in the background overflowed with interview requests. With a sheepish grin, Wong admitted he sometimes confused journalists’ names with their media outlets.

Amid the whirlwind of attention, Wong has resolved to remain a counterpoint to US President Donald Trump’s order restricting birthright citizenship, a controversial proclamation now before the Supreme Court.

“This is the battle for, in a sense, the soul of America,” he said.

Though he is not part of any of the legal challenges to Trump’s order, Wong has become the a vocal defender and a living testament of the legacy of his great-grandfather, Wong Kim Ark, whose 1898 Supreme Court victory – in the face of discriminatory laws targeting Chinese immigrants – confirmed a cornerstone of American citizenship law: anyone born on US soil is a citizen.

As a result of the landmark case, Wong’s family, and millions of other children from immigrant households over the decades since have become US citizens.