By Danille Grbic
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) celebrates America’s 235th birthday by welcoming more than 24,000 new citizens during naturalization ceremonies which started on June 27 and leading up to Independence Day on July 4. Eight of the approximately 350 ceremonies across the United States and overseas are being held specifically for members of the U.S. armed forces.
“Every Fourth of July, we celebrate our country’s spirit of independence,” said USCIS Director Alejandro Mayorkas. “This spirit, and our founding ideals of freedom and democracy, have allowed us to achieve great success as a nation of immigrants. Immigrants come to America in search of opportunity and, by taking the Oath of Allegiance, embrace the rights and responsibilities of U.S. citizenship.”The celebration of citizenship includes a ceremony aboard the USS Midway in San Diego, where 200 members of the military will naturalize in a tribute to Gulf War veterans.
Keeping with USCIS’s commitment to bring immigration services to the troops wherever they serve, members of the U.S. armed forces will take theOath of Allegiance to become citizens at all-military ceremonies in Baghdad, Kabul, and Camp Arifjan, Kuwait.
From Niren & Associates, we congratulate all U.S. immigrants who naturalized during these ceremonies and significantly contribute in maintaining the country’s spirit of independence. Happy Birthday U.S.A.!
President & CEO
Michael Niren
Mr. Niren is CEO of VisaPlace LLC and the President and Managing Partner of VisaPlace Legal Canada, an immigration law firm based in Toronto, and VisaPlace Legal US a law firm registered in The District of Columbia, USA. Mr. Niren is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto, a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada, the Canadian Bar Association’s Citizenship and Immigration Section, American Lawyers Association, and an Associate Member of the American Bar Association.
