9.18.2024 US Citizen Naturalization Ceremony

he ye hear ye all persons have anything do for Michael D Rudi Chief Justice of the superior court now sitting at for River for the purpose of naturalization draw near give your attendance and you shall be heard God save the come of the Massachusetts please remain standing good afternoon welcome aboard the USS Massachusetts my name is Jennifer Sullivan and I'm the clerk of courts for Bristol County and it is truly a

privilege to be here with you today as a small part of your journey to citizenship culminating in this special event congratulations to each one of you on all your hard work and dedication to citizenship we have a special ceremony planned for you this afternoon we are very honored to have the Chief Justice of the superior Court Michael Rudi presiding over today's ceremony joined by our regional administrative Justice

rafy aayan we also have the great honor to have the Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Andrea Joy Campbell here with us and she will be giving some featured remarks later in the program also up here with me is Sandra burns from the USCIS court officer Brian Bernier Emily noaki our guest soloist we Senator Michael Rodricks mayor Paul Coogan and da Tom Quinn thank you all for being here at

this time I would ask the veteran the Vietnam veterans association of Fall River to please present the colors

and now for the singing of our national anthem our guest soloist miss Emily

nocki you see by the da we light what so proudly we H at the Twilight last ging whose broad stripes and bright stars through the p f where the ramp Parts s watch we so gly stream and the rocket the boms buring in the G proof through the night that our flag was still there oh say does that star spangle they way where the land of the three in the home of the bra

wow chills that was amazing thank you Emily okay you may be seated at this time for the presentation of motions to the court I call to the podium Miss Sandra burns from the United States citizenship and immigration service and chief justice Rudy

good afternoon my name is Sandy Burns and I'm pleased to represent United States citizenship and region services in the department of home and security at these proceedings today your honor there are 13 applicants today for naturalization present who wish to change their names as part of proess naturalization the government has investigated re for these changes interposes no objection

I respectfully move that all 13 name changes be allowed that motion is allowed thank you your honor your honor there are 50 applicants for today for metalization present who have been duly examined under the immigration nationality act provision of 1952 is amended and they have been found well qualified for United States citizenship and at this time I respectfully move that all that you request the clerk of

the court to minister the oath of allegiance to all safety applicants thus bestow upon them one of our nation's highest honors United States Citi allowed in so order thank

you well all applicants for citizenship please stand Raise Your Right hands and get them up there this is the moment you've been waiting for and repeat after me I hereby declare on oath that I absolutely and entirely renounce all Allegiance and Fidelity all Al and to any for in Prince state or sovereignty of whom or which I have here to for been a subject or citizen that I will support and defend

will support and defend the Constitution and the laws of the United States against all enemies both foreign and domestic that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by law by that I will perform non-combatant service in the armed forces of the United States armed forces of the United States when required by law by that I

will perform work of national importance under civilian Direction when required by law byw and I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion so help me God my fellow Americans

congratulations you may be seated and now it is my great honor to invite to the podium the presiding Justice in this special sitting of the Superior Court chief justice Michael Rudy for a few remarks thank you Clerk suvin and welcome everyone my newest fellow Americans congratulations welcome to the special sitting of the massachusett superior court on the USS Massachusetts taking the oath of

allegiance to the United States as you've just done is a right of passage with a long history for more than two centuries men and women have come from foreign lands to this country and become citizens of it pledging their loyalty is the final step in becoming citizens the story of America is a story of immigration as former President John Kennedy said aside from Native Americans every

American who's ever been a citizen of this country has either been an immigrant or a descendant of an immigrant my name is Michael Rudi I am honored to serve as the 21st Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Superior Court on behalf of my colleagues judge Jan the attorney general and the dignitaries up in this Podium I welcome you and congratulate you as citizens of this country you and your family should be

very proud by your hard work pay in commitment to this long process you've achieved citizenship in the United States today is a day for celebration for you and those citizens who preceded you the United States will be enriched by Your Presence by your drive your courage your culture your belief in Freedom that brought you here we welcome you into our nation's family a family composed of a diverse yet United people

bound together as all Americans are you are now American citizens endowed with precious rights of freedom your citizenship gives you and your families the opportunity for a new and a different life but citizenship also confers upon you obligations you have the privilege to vote and the responsibility to do so by voting you help choose our leaders at every level of government voting is one of your most

perhaps greatest Powers you have the privilege and the obligation to serve on juries Embrace that by serving on a jury you have the power to help us determine guilt or innocence who pays damage or who doesn't you will help us decide Justice this is a critical part of being a citizen you have the privilege and the obligation to safeguard democracy and to remind others around you that they too

need to value and appreciate the Democracy that we take for granted you have the privilege and the responsibility of preserving those freedoms and opportunities that so many before you fought and died to secure this Majestic Battleship the USS Massachusetts is a symbol of the sacrifices that citizens of this country make to keep this country free this ship served with honor during World War II it

carried American troops around the Glo Globe to fight for freedom and against Injustice thanks to those men and women who serve bravely on the ship and the support of their families and communities the freedoms they fought for are now yours to enjoy and yours to defend commit yourselves to uniting our people and one another remember and remind your fellow citizens that we're all responsible for what this country

country is and what it soon will become for our children and our grandchildren cherish and defend the freedoms you now enjoy and remember our belief in tolerance use your voice to celebrate what is good about this country and change what isn't I wish you and many generations of you families all the peace and joy that citizen brings welcome to citizenship and the greatest experiment and freedom known to man

congratulations thank you chief justice forting and now it is my honor and privilege to invite our attorney general Andrea Joy Campell for some featured

remarks good afternoon everyone okay this is a celebration good afternoon everyone afternoon and congratulations to my fellow Americans and your families this is indeed a special day and I am honored to be here with each and every one of you congratulations thank you thank you of course to the Chief Justice as well as members of the Judiciary thank you of course to our clerk thank you for the

invitation to be here thank you to my fellow electeds thank you to all of the organizers who put together this event none of us set up the chairs we didn't do anything of that so I never want to take that for granted so thank you to everyone who was a part of making this day so special thank you of course to our veterans who are here with us who are serving and have served in the past

we appreciate you and to my newest and fellow Americans congratulations I hope today you find more than one moment and opportunity to congratulate yourself and for your family to also congratulate you because this is indeed a special day it's an honor to be a part of this ceremony and it is of course an honor to address you as new citizens I feel very lucky that not only you're a new citizen but that you have

chosen to be a resident and a participant here in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts because I truly do think our state is the greatest state in the country oh yeah we can St on because we follow a strong tradition of always welcoming immigrants especially in this moment of time and making sure that you feel welcomed but most importantly protected and that you're given all the tools and

opportunity to thrive and prosper and succeed it's an honor to also be of course aboard this vessel and here at the Battleship Cove to really think and reflect upon the F the folks who sacrifice for those of us to stand here and to enjoy the Privileges the freedoms of their sacrifice and to have the oath taken aboard this vessel you should not take lightly so I invite you not to run off

today but to really take in what this all means as it attaches it of course relates to your new citizenship I also know that today's ceremony represents the culmination of your long and likely probably difficult journey to get here so that you as well as your family could have access to opportunity and a better life I also know it's important that you go after your hopes your dreams your aspirations and

anything else that is possible to fulfill a purpose for yourself and your family and most importantly to actualize your fullest god-given potential some of you are here after fleeing violence persecution escaping poverty or significant turmoil you are here so that you can express who you really are practice as you believe love who you want to love achieve what you're destined to achieve

and so much more you are a group of strong courageous and resilient people that cover and represent 19 different countries from Brazil to Ireland from Pakistan to Vietnam and so much more one of the many I think there are many Creeds or foundational Creeds of course of America but one that is most known of course is in Latin eus UNAM out of many one so no matter what led you here or

where you came from you are now all proud Americans a significant part of our American story and our American fabric but at the same time an opportunity to never forget where you come from and to know that your stories your culture your backgrounds are equally significant to bring into the fold as we continue to shape this American story because I know not only for America but certainly in Massachusetts

and this great Commonwealth that you do indeed make us stronger more prosperous and more resilient and I'll add more beautiful America is a nation grounded of course and ideas of Freedom Liberty and equality a nation not bound by One race or religion a nation founded by built by and sustained by immigrants immigrants just like you today you as American citizens with the full opportunities rights and privileges

of citizenship have been entrusted with the responsibility to uphold these very American values and not just for yourself but for everyone who came before you and everyone who will come after you and it's also to make sure that others both within our borders and from Nations far and near can have the same rights and opportunities as the rest of us your citizenship and much of this list has

already been articulated so I won't repeat every single one but demands your active participation your citizenship calls on you to be engaged not to be passive not to be bystanders but direct participants to register to vote and to make your voices heard at the polls to get involved in your communities to run for office at every level of political office to make your voices heard and your contributions

felt Civic engagement is what will sustain this democracy it is what America is all about and of course we want to ensure that this America remains true to all of its people know that our future America is now your future and the promise America of America lies in your hand hands just as it lies in the hands of all of us who have the honor and privilege to sit up here Civic

engagement is perhaps the most more crucial now than it has been I think ever before we sadly are living in an unprecedented threat to our democracy and threats to some of our fundamental values we are also witnessing a broader rise of anti-immigrant rhetoric and xenophobia and unfounded fear of those who live abroad and of course folks who are here it is a painful reality but one we must and absolutely should

acknowledge this struggle of course takes different forms it includes discrimination outright immigrant bands persecution and other systemic barriers yes yet most importantly I don't want to stay in a place of doom and gloom because today is not only a proud moment but it's an opportunity to remind us all that we have experienced some of this in the past in every single time as a collective we have over

overcome those barriers this crucial work doesn't just include us who are up here or the organizers of this event it must also include each and every one of you so do vote do get engaged and if you don't know how contact us cuz we have a long list of things you could be doing I also want you to know that as your attorney general and I am proud to serve as your attorney general I'm proud

to be the first black woman to serve in this role in the Commonwealth representing all of you I never take that blessing and privilege lightly but I am your attorney general our Office of the Attorney General is your office we will do everything in our our power using every tool working in partnership with those who stand behind me and those who couldn't be here present today to protect you to Ure you

have access to opportunity resources knowledge around your rights technical assistance anything and everything that you might think you need we want to make ourselves available to you in fact why love representing Massachusetts is because we have a strong tra tradition of welcoming and supporting immigrants from around the world in fact you can argue that the very first immigrants to what would

eventually lead to modern day America arrived here in Massachusetts and Plymouth Bay back in 1620 they escaped the course persecution in Europe and came here to freely practice what they believed or some would add in the 1630s you had slaves African slaves who came to Massachusetts who helped the force build this Commonwealth this country and this democracy currently is estimated that every one in six residents of

Massachusetts is foreign born and more than 50% of all Massachusetts immigrants are citizens just as you have become today so our office is here to support you and I want to name one thing that we're doing or maybe two as I talked about earlier the anti-immigrant rhetoric that exists not only across this country but also here in Massachusetts we don't just talk the talk we take action to protect our

people and recently actually filed a lawsuit against a Neo-Nazi group that was started right here in Massachusetts none of which any of us would be proud about but as a collective we are Prosecuting them and taking them to court not for their beliefs or speech it's not a meeting or meetings I would show up to but for the conduct that interferes with the rights of our immigrants and the rights of all of us

so again we are a proud partner in government with all of my fellow elected and colleagues to do whatever we can to protect you it is an honor and privilege like I said to be here and I truly do mean it we're sitting up here looking at all of you and y'all look good just beautiful and it is remarkable in a day that sometimes can be hard this work that we

do is extremely challenging ing but the joy that we all feel today on your on our sort of your behalf is something we never take for granted and you will never forget so thank you all so very much for your hard work congratulations on this Victory congratulations to your families none of us does this by ourselves and truly enjoy today you've earned it thank you thank you attorney general

Campbell and now we're going to present the certificates to our new citizens um so if I could have everybody on the podium uh we're going to step down from the podium and when your name is called please step forward families feel free to move about and take some pictures if you'd like

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welome congratulations congratulations congratulations congratulations congratulations congratulations on behalf of USCIS is there anyone here that did not receive a certificate on behalf of USCIS in the Boston field office we say congratulations and one moment please congratulations no thank thank you all we're going to the proceeding is not over yet but congratulations to all of you for get

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sorry about that okay and now if I can ask uh everyone to stand and join me in the pledge of allegiance to our flag I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible liberty and justice for all thank you and now for a rendition of God Bless America I ask our guest soloist Emily nari to come to the

podium God Bless America land that I love stand beside her and guide her through the night with the light from above from the mountains to the pries to the O white with B God bless America my home sweet home God bless America my home sweet

home thank you Emily and this is your home sweet home now so congratulations again um before we conclude today's ceremony I would like to thank again chief justice Rudi attorney general Campbell Emily uh mayor cougan da Quinn Senator Rodricks uh Sandy burns from USCIS thank you for sticking and listening I you listen me Brian Bernie our court officer and judges San um for being here as well as all of you um and

I also would like to thank the veterans the Vietnam veterans association of Fall River for their participation in today's ceremony thank you for both being here and for your service now we have a little special treat uh before we officially conclude uh the special sitting of the Superior Court um instead of a uh gun salute we do uh a dove release so if I could ask uh Senator Rodricks and judge

Sayan right so we're going to be we're going have a 21 dub salute and um I do want to thank on behalf of everyone here I want to thank uh Bill and Paula dis Maris for bringing uh gracing us with these lovely birds and uh we are going to all right so these these white these white dubs represent hope and peace uh and you'll see there's also some gray and multicolored doves um those are the

those are war heroes those are the descendants of of doves that were pigeons that were used uh during the War World War II um many of them served uh very bravely and uh they really are war heroes so uh that's that's who these these birds represent so

I'd also like to thank Caitlyn who became our designated photographer so thank you Kaitlyn for helping out uh so at this time I would ask you to please retire the colors

once again congratulations to all and on behalf of the Superior Court we look forward to seeing you when you report for jury duty Mr prer please adjourn this pral sitting of the Superior Court

hear ye hear ye hear ye all persons have do for honorable Michael D grudi Chief Justice of the superior court now sitting at for River for the purpose of naturalization deot as the cting of this court is now adjourned God save the caral of Massachusetts

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