WASHINGTON: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will hold Independence Day celebrations this year by welcoming approximately 11,000 new citizens in more than 195 naturalization ceremonies between June 28 and July 5.
According to a statement issued by the USCIS on Friday, these ceremonies show the commitment of the US government to welcome immigrants and promote the benefits of U.S. citizenship for all who are eligible.
It noted in the year 2023, USCIS accepted 878,500 new U.S. citizens. So far in the year 2024, USCIS has welcomed 589,400 new citizens and made significant progress in reducing naturalization pending queues.
“At USCIS we are privileged to administer the Oath of Allegiance to thousands of new citizens during the Independence Day holiday,” said USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou.
“These new citizens add diversity and character to our great nation, and we are committed to helping all who are eligible to experience the freedoms and liberties we enjoy as U.S. citizens,” he said.
The statement said every July 4, the US celebrates the day the Second Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence in 1776, declaring the 13 American colonies a new nation.
It said the USCIS has a long tradition of commemorating this auspicious occasion by hosting special Independence Day-themed naturalization ceremonies across the world.
It went on to say this year’s Independence Day activities will include special naturalization ceremonies across the United States. The USCIS in a statement said on July 4, Deputy Assistant to the President Blas Nuñez-Neto will take part in a ceremony at George Washington’s Mount Vernon.
USCIS reaffirmed its commitment to making the naturalization process accessible to all who are eligible. Since the start of the Biden-Harris administration, USCIS has taken a number of steps to speed the immigration process.
It said additionally, that USCIS has continued the support of U.S. military members, veterans and their families by streamlining the naturalization process.
