November 20, 2004
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America the Beautiful
I remember the day my parents became naturalized U.S. citizens. I remember the exam book my mom studied at night for the test she had to take. I remember the crowd of people in that assembly hall in Virginia’s state capitol. We were all different colors and from all different countries. Beautiful people, who have a history that CBS never tells. Instead, I get to hear about all the people who are aching to leave the country because their “freedoms are being taken away.”
To know what freedom means is a painful process. I welcome the whiners (most of whom were born in the U.S.) to leave the U.S. and define the word on their own.
Please make room for people who have a different definition of the word.
New U.S. citizens
Sat, Nov 20, 2004
Dzenita Kajtaz, left, 15, hugs her mother, Samija Bektesevic, after Bektesevic became a U.S. citizen at a naturalization ceremony Friday at the Oneida County Office Building in Utica.
The list of area residents who became U.S. citizens in a naturalization ceremony Friday at the Oneida County Office Building:
Marcelo Anibarro, Spain, Utica
Izabela Bartosik, Poland, Deerfield
Dulsa Becirevic, Bosnia, Utica
Mersija Behric, Yugoslavia, Utica,
Samija Bektesevic, Bosnia, Utica
Hannah Berkoh, Ghana, Utica
Luba Nicole Boyko, Russia, Utica
Asima Buljubasic, Bosnia, Utica
Midhad Buljubasic, Bosnia, Utica
Marija Catovic, Bosnia, Utica
Zuhdija Cejvanovic, Bosnia, Utica
Faruk Cemer, Bosnia, Utica
Bing Chen, China, Utica
Silke Delisle, Germany, Frankfort,
Suad Dervisevic, Bosnia, Utica
Suad Dizdarvic, Bosnia, Utica
Zineta Dizdarevic, Bosnia, Utica
Esma Dolic, Bosnia, Utica
Emin Dzehverovic, Bosnia, Utica
Zijad Dzelilovic, Bosnia, Utica
Zerina Dzinovic, Bosnia, Utica
Marisol Genao, Dominican Republic, Utica
Amir Hekmatian, Iran, New York Mills
Muradifa Hodzic, Bosnia, Utica
Salim Hozanovic, Bosnia, Utica
Ermina Kajtezovic, Bosnia, Utica
Ismet Kalic, Bosnia, Utica
Ibrahim Karagic, Bosnia, Utica
Slavica Karagic, Bosnia, Utica
Jasminka Karajkovic, Bosnia, Utica
Galina Karpova, Russia, Utica
Mirsad Kilim, Bosnia, Utica
Faruk Kivrak, Turkey, Clinton
Hasiba Lidan, Bosnia, Utica
Rasim Lidan, Bosnia, Utica
Melinda Mayer, Canada, Sauquoit
Edina Miljkovic, Bosnia, Utica
Nura Miljkovic, Bosnia, Utica
Senad Miljkovic, Bosnia, Utica
Olga Naumenko, Russia, Newport
Tatiana Naumenko, Russia, Newport
Lan Chi Thi Nguyen, Vietnam, Utica
Elvira Pazara, Bosnia, Utica
Asmira Pehlic, Bosnia, Utica
Mirsad Pjanic, Bosnia, Utica
Edina Rosic, Bosnia, Utica
Hase Rosic, Bosnia, Utica
Amira Sakanovic, Bosnia, Utica
Nick Simonchyk, Belarus, Clinton
Irving Tavarez, Dominican Republic, Utica
Merisa Tricic, Bosnia, Utica
Sofya Tur, Belarus, Herkimer
Ifeta Zvronicanin, Bosnia, Utica
BECOMING A CITIZEN
To become a citizen, people must be able to understand, read, write and speak English; know about U.S. history and government; have good moral character; believe in the U.S. Constitution; and be at least 18 years old.
Candidates must fill out an application, provide documentation, pay a $310 fee, have fingerprints taken, have a personal interview and attend a naturalization ceremony.
Applicants can apply up to 90 days before the five-year anniversary of their arrival. The process takes five to nine months from the time the application is sent.
Those who take the oath of citizenship can travel with a U.S. passport, obtain government jobs, hold office and vote.
from http://www.uticaod.com/archive/2004/11/20/news/13211.html
