This article was originally posted by YourErie.com
The City of Erie proudly welcomed a new group of naturalized citizens to its ranks Friday.
Friday morning, several dozen immigrants took the Oath of Citizenship at the Erie Federal Courthouse. The group filled the courtroom as people from around the world and all walks of life became U.S. citizens.
Mayor Joe Schember was on hand for the ceremony to represent the city as well as a member of the League of Woman Voters who was there to help register folks to vote.
And she said while she was there in an official capacity, the ceremony has a special place in her heart.
“To be honest, it’s a personal gratitude for me, because I am a naturalized citizen. So I really whole heartedly just got a great joy out of the ceremony, because I know how much it meant to me,” said Lucia Vasaio Krupicz of League of Women Voters.
According to our crew, there were approximately 60 to 65 people taking the Oath of Citizenship Friday.
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This background paper was produced as part of the League's two-year (2006-2008) study of Immigration aimed at helping communities understand the implications of immigration at the local, state, and federal level. At the bottom of each paper is a link to a downloadable PDF version. "....The United States is often called a nation of immigrants. And it is. The quotation above expresses the diversity of immigrants and those of immigrant stock, and the vitality this diversity contributes to America. Certainly, new arrivals have a different perspective of immigration from those who have been here a while and those whose roots in America go a long way back. For recent arrivals, the immigration experience is immediate and still in process. For Native Americans, the impact of immigration goes back a long way and frequently continues to have a personal resonance. For those whose immigrant status dates back as recently as their parents’ or grandparents’ arrival in this country or more than 400 years when their ancestors arrived, immigration is a more distant event. ..."
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Washington, DC – The League of Women Voters is proud to participate in National Voter Registration Day 2014 (NVRD), a 50-state effort to register hundreds of thousands of voters on one single day.