Partnership results in citizenship for 55 in area

By Nancy Westlund
Herald staff

Thanks to a pioneering partnership between the Sacramento office of the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service and an area community-based organization, 55 people became U.S. citizens in early August.

The naturalization ceremony Aug. 2 at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament and the preceding interview process, held for the first time in Sacramento at church sites, was a joint effort linking the INS and the Sacramento Valley Organizing Community, a coalition of more than 40 churches in Sacramento, Yolo and Solano counties.

The majority of people sworn in as new citizens at the ceremony came from Sacramento-area Catholic parishes.

“People were able to become friends from day one and felt a special bond,” said Carmen Mirazo, a chairwoman with SVOC. “Now they will be working together in their church communities.”

Applicants for citizenship in Sacramento are typically interviewed in the INS building on Capitol Mall and naturalized by a judge in a ceremony at the Crest Theater in downtown Sacramento.

Mirazo said groundwork for the innovative pilot program began over a year ago when SVOC members met with Susan Curda, head of the Sacramento office of the INS.

“We thought it would be great if we could get people their citizenship papers faster working together,” Mirazo said.

The first step began about five months ago when the application process was held at Holy Cross Parish in West Sacramento. Other parishes in the diocese promoting the program included Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Joseph, St. Peter and St. Anne parishes in Sacramento, and St. Joseph Parish in Elk Grove.

Then candidates were prepared for citizenship interviews by staff members of the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, a statewide citizenship group. Every Friday for three months candidates were taught English-language skills and studied exam questions.

“Having the meetings in church made me feel more comfortable. Everybody worked together like a family,” said Consuelo Maria Gutierrez, one of several members of St. Peter Parish who took the citizenship classes. “Church feels like home.”

Final interviews were conducted at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church during that last week of July. Curda said that it’s not unusual for the INS to hold ceremonies at schools, church halls or auditoriums, but off-site interviews had not previously occurred in Sacramento.

In her comments to families and friends in attendance at the naturalization ceremony, Curda said the pilot program demonstrated what can happen when government and the community come together.

“The Sacramento office decided we wanted to get out into the community a little bit more, and try to put a human face on the INS,” she said. “This ceremony and all the hard work that went into it on both sides really demonstrates the good will that can be generated.”

Efrain Martinez, a member of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish who was born in Mexico, said for the past 13 years he dreamed of the moment that became reality on Aug 2.

“That was the biggest step for me here in the United States,” said Martinez, who shared his joy with a sister who was also naturalized, and a large delegation of family members. “I made it.”

Miguel Angel Munoz, another of the 55 new citizens, said just a few years ago he knew no English, had no car, and was unable to vote.

“I have attained my goal,” said Munoz, who is also a member of Our Lady of Guadalupe. “I’m an American citizen, and I hope we all will use our vote to choose our representatives.”

SVOC and the INS are looking to link up again to facilitate the citizenship process with even larger numbers of interested candidates.

“We’re going to be doing similar outreach initiatives with a variety of ethnic groups and community-based organizations,” Curda said. “Our biggest concern is being able to preserve the privacy of the interview and the sanctity of the citizenship ceremony, and I think we were able to do that.”

Copyright © 2001 Diocese of Sacramento - All Rights Reserved

[Catholic Herald - Cover Page]