New U.S. citizens celebrate dream
GALVESTON — Clemente Jimenez left Mexico City in 1998 for this island city, looking for a dream in a country long affiliated with them.
One such dream came to fruition Saturday when the 66year-old, who has lived in Galveston since, became a naturalized American citizen alongside 19 other people from 15 countries.
“I’m very happy. I can’t explain what I’m feeling,” Jimenez, wearing a blue suit with a white shirt and red tie, holding a tiny American flag in one hand, said after getting his certificate. “My face just says everything.”
The smile refused to leave his face.
Nearly two dozen new citizens were welcomed with a special ceremony that coincided with Juneteenth, marking the day when Union soldiers arrived to Galveston armed with the emancipation proclamation and the news slavery had been abolished. Those who were naturalized Saturday came to the U.S. from Algeria, Belize, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, Colombia, Honduras, India, Mexico, Nigeria, Philippines, Serbia, Thailand, Turkey and Vietnam.
“Today we reflect that the past no matter how dark can lead to something brighter and more hopeful,” Amanda Baran, of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, told the people gathered at the Rosenberg Library. “That a journey, no matter its starting point, can end in a place full of promise.”
The oath of allegiance was administered by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey V. Brown, whose court presided over the ceremony.
“I know it’s not been an easy road,” Brown said. “We ask a lot of those who want to become American citizens but we do so because of the deep significance of the rights that you acquire and the duties that you assume as citizens of the greatest nation
the world has ever known. So congratulations and welcome to the club.”
Dale Wainwright, a former justice of the Texas Supreme Court, told the newly naturalized citizens they were “now endowed with all the rights and responsibilities of a citizen.”
“You can express yourself and are protected by the constitution, worship as you desire, vote in elections, travel with a United States passport and obtain citizenship for your children who are minors,” Wainwright said. “The commitment, the diligence, the desire to achieve your dreams and accomplish this objective shows how impressive you are. Nothing matters more to accomplishing your dreams than the size of your heart, the strength of your desire, the dedication to your goals and the depth of your faith.”
Jimenez knows well it was not easy road. He said the hardest part of the process was learning everything needed to demonstrate an understanding of the country and its history.
And, obviously, dealing with nervousness.
“I always tell students,” said Magdalena Alvarado, who taught Jimenez through Ser y Hacer Galveston, an organization that offers citizenship prep, “when this ceremony occurs, think of it as a movie about how you got to the United States and what you can accomplish.”
The courses consisted of two semesters of about 12 weeks each, practicing
and learning American history.
In 11 years helping migrants, Alvarado estimated she had met about 3,000 people who became citizens from Galveston and Harris counties.
“The naturalization of one person can help the rest of a family,” Alvarado said.
Despite the nerves, Jimenez said his interview about a month ago went well — and he felt prepared. He said he has asked some of the history questions he was studying to his American-born friends. He knew more than some of them.
“It’s like a beginning,” Alvarado told him Saturday. “If you can accomplish this, you can accomplish other things in your life.”
Mary Longoria, another teacher who helped him prep, joked he can be a sheriff.
“No,” he said, smiling again. “I can become a judge.”