Brandeis Law welcomes 35 new citizens at naturalization ceremony

After taking the Oath of Allegiance, 35 people from 19 countries became citizens at a ceremony at the Brandeis School of Law Oct. 5, 2017.

The new citizens came from countries across the globe, from Russia to Mexico, from Myanmar to Somalia.

"I applaud your commitment to this country and honor the unique path that has led you here today," said Brandeis Professor Enid Trucios-Haynes, an immigration law expert and co-director of the Brandeis Human Rights Advocacy Program. "We are all better because you join us."

Trucios-Haynes, who is chair of the Faculty Senate and trustee of the University of Louisville, shared a bit about her own family's immigration stories. Her grandparents were undocumented immigrants from Peru and Panama, and her grandfather eventually became a U.S. citizen by entering the country via Canada.

U.S. District Judge David Hale, Western District of Kentucky, presided at the ceremony in the law school's Allen Courtroom. Law student Andre Skomorowsky sang "The Star-Spangled Banner."

See a video from the 2016 naturalization ceremony hosted by the law school.