I became a US citizen yesterday!

4 years in the making, a dream for much longer than that. I was fortunate to have one of the fastest routes to citizenship and to have mostly experienced a very smooth process with lovely immigration agents who processed my cases with respect and dignity.

I spent the last 9 months living in fear, watching immigrants get demonized and even permanent residency (green cards) to be treated as “a privilege” to be revoked at whim.

I've been quiet, afraid to say anything in public that could be misinterpreted or used against me.

I've repeatedly said goodbye to my city, I've cried walking my favorite streets, bracing for the worst as top officials bragged about getting rid of immigrants and "cleaning up" the country as if we were filth.

Now, I intend to find ways to use my citizenship for the greater good and to be civically engaged in ways not available to people here on visas and green cards, affected but forced to suffer in silence. I am looking forward to discovering what that will look like for me.

#USA #citizenship #immigration #immigrants

1/2 (A mini-thread)

I’d love dual citizenship, but the reality is that permanent residency just isn’t enough for this naturalized Japanese citizen. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2025/10/17/japan/choosing-japanese-citizenship/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #japan #visas #immigration #expats #foreignworkers #immigrationservicesagency #immigrationbureau #citizenship

2/2 Reflection on #citizenship:

I do not treat the concept of “ #democracy" lightly. I was born into the aftermath of centuries of totalitarian oppression that ended suddenly, leaving the nascent Ukrainian state of the late 90s and early 2000s floundering in the turbulent whirlpool of hopes and fears felt by millions of people who were finally allowed to ponder: how to build a free democratic state in the place of Soviet and imperial ruins?

I was taught the words "democracy", "citizen", "freedom", "voting", “liberty" (and more) by people who, less than two decades prior, weren't allowed to leave the borders of their country. I was told about self-determination by people whose political choices were ridiculed, punished, and eviscerated form most of their lives. The duty of governing ourselves felt to us ephemeral - a nice fantasy, akin to a fairytale or a utopia from fictional works.

And then I saw those same people fight with their bodies and souls once the previously unfathomable democracy was threatened. Protests in 2004, then again in 2014, then the unthinkable war against foreign invasion in 2022. Democracy no longer felt abstract or silly. It became as tangible as saying "I love you".

I write of Ukraine as I reflect on becoming a citizen of another country because the history and values of my adopted United States feel as real as the skin on my legs, the significance of its legacy lays as heavy as the weight of my waist-long hair, and the desire to uphold the freedoms of its Constitution burns my throat as harshly as dehydration after a long day in the sun.

People have asked me why I even want to join this country, when the present moment is shrouded in impenetrable darkness. And I answer: because I've felt the warmth of a newly lit fire of freedom breaking through shadows that for centuries looked like solid walls. I have seen kindness, and solidarity heal the fear and hate of oppression. I've seen liberty emerge from nothing but the human soul.

I am not a religious person, but I have faith. Faith in the ideals at the foundation of the American project. Faint but powerful recognition that "we the people" now includes me.

I love #America. And I hope to keep loving my home for the rest of my life.

2/2 Reflection on #citizenship:

I do not treat the concept of “ #democracy" lightly. I was born into the aftermath of centuries of totalitarian oppression that ended suddenly, leaving the nascent Ukrainian state of the late 90s and early 2000s floundering in the turbulent whirlpool of hopes and fears felt by millions of people who were finally allowed to ponder: how to build a free democratic state in the place of Soviet and imperial ruins?

I was taught the words "democracy", "citizen", "freedom", "voting", “liberty" (and more) by people who, less than two decades prior, weren't allowed to leave the borders of their country. I was told about self-determination by people whose political choices were ridiculed, punished, and eviscerated form most of their lives. The duty of governing ourselves felt to us ephemeral - a nice fantasy, akin to a fairytale or a utopia from fictional works.

And then I saw those same people fight with their bodies and souls once the previously unfathomable democracy was threatened. Protests in 2004, then again in 2014, then the unthinkable war against foreign invasion in 2022. Democracy no longer felt abstract or silly. It became as tangible as saying "I love you".

I write of Ukraine as I reflect on becoming a citizen of another country because the history and values of my adopted United States feel as real as the skin on my legs, the significance of its legacy lays as heavy as the weight of my waist-long hair, and the desire to uphold the freedoms of its Constitution burns my throat as harshly as dehydration after a long day in the sun.

People have asked me why I even want to join this country, when the present moment is shrouded in impenetrable darkness. And I answer: because I've felt the warmth of a newly lit fire of freedom breaking through shadows that for centuries looked like solid walls. I have seen kindness, and solidarity heal the fear and hate of oppression. I've seen liberty emerge from nothing but the human soul.

I am not a religious person, but I have faith. Faith in the ideals at the foundation of the American project. Faint but powerful recognition that "we the people" now includes me.

I love #America. And I hope to keep loving my home for the rest of my life.

I became a US citizen yesterday!

4 years in the making, a dream for much longer than that. I was fortunate to have one of the fastest routes to citizenship and to have mostly experienced a very smooth process with lovely immigration agents who processed my cases with respect and dignity.

I spent the last 9 months living in fear, watching immigrants get demonized and even permanent residency (green cards) to be treated as “a privilege” to be revoked at whim.

I've been quiet, afraid to say anything in public that could be misinterpreted or used against me.

I've repeatedly said goodbye to my city, I've cried walking my favorite streets, bracing for the worst as top officials bragged about getting rid of immigrants and "cleaning up" the country as if we were filth.

Now, I intend to find ways to use my citizenship for the greater good and to be civically engaged in ways not available to people here on visas and green cards, affected but forced to suffer in silence. I am looking forward to discovering what that will look like for me.

#USA #citizenship #immigration #immigrants

1/2 (A mini-thread)

So far, 9 agencies have terminated #union contracts that covered >445k #FederalWorkers from the #EPA, US #CoastGuard, #FEMA, #GSA, the Departments of #HHS, #Agriculture & #VeteransAffairs, & parts of #ICE & #Citizenship & #Immigration Services.

“This is literally the largest act of union busting in American history,” said Mike Podhorzer, a former political director of the #AFLCIO. “There’s not another time when that many people lost their union.”

#law #labor #unions#Trump

Jose Takei, an 82-year-old man of Japanese descent who became stateless after being left in the Philippines as a child following the end of World War II, is keen to get Japanese citizenship while he is in good health. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/15/japan/filipino-japanese-citizenship/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #philippines #wwii #foreignministry #shigeruishiba #citizenship #stateless

After #Kabul fell to the #Taliban in August 2021, President Joe #Biden’s admin moved to resettle #Afghans who had worked for the #US government through the Special Immigrant #Visa (#SIV) program, which grants lawful permanent resident status & a pathway to US #citizenship. As of April, about 25k Afghans had received an SIV, & another 160k had pending applications, said Adam Bates, an attorney with the International #Refugee Assistance Program who analyzed #State Dept data.

#immigration #law

After #Kabul fell to the #Taliban in August 2021, President Joe #Biden’s admin moved to resettle #Afghans who had worked for the #US government through the Special Immigrant #Visa (#SIV) program, which grants lawful permanent resident status & a pathway to US #citizenship. As of April, about 25k Afghans had received an SIV, & another 160k had pending applications, said Adam Bates, an attorney with the International #Refugee Assistance Program who analyzed #State Dept data.

#immigration #law

The states have argued #Trump’s #BirthrightCitizenship order is blatantly #unconstitutional & threatens millions of dollars for #HealthInsurance contingent on #citizenship. The issue is expected to move quickly back to SCOTUS.

#law#AbuseOfPower

AP spent a day outside a LA detention center: "On a recent day, dozens of people arrived with medication, clothing and hope of seeing their loved one, if only briefly. After hours of waiting, many were turned away with no news, not even confirmation that their relative was inside. Some relayed reports of horrific conditions inside, including inmates who are so thirsty that they have been drinking from the toilets."

https://apnews.com/article/ice-immigration-raids-detainee-families-los-angeles-651d8bba4752553a67eb53db084677b2

#immigrant #immigration #detention #citizenship#ICE

AP spent a day outside a LA detention center: "On a recent day, dozens of people arrived with medication, clothing and hope of seeing their loved one, if only briefly. After hours of waiting, many were turned away with no news, not even confirmation that their relative was inside. Some relayed reports of horrific conditions inside, including inmates who are so thirsty that they have been drinking from the toilets."

https://apnews.com/article/ice-immigration-raids-detainee-families-los-angeles-651d8bba4752553a67eb53db084677b2

#immigrant #immigration #detention #citizenship#ICE

“To see that this admin is plotting out how they're going to expand its use in ways that we have not seen before is very shocking & very concerning,”said Sameera Hafiz, policy director of the Immigration Legal Resource Center, a national advocacy org providing legal training in #immigration #law.

“It is…in a way trying to create a second class of US citizens:”where one set of #Americans is safe & those not born in the country are still at risk of losing their hard-fought #citizenship, she said.

…Acc/to this new memo, the #DOJ is also expanding its criteria of which #crimes put individuals at risk of losing their #citizenship. That includes #NationalSecurity violations & committing acts of #fraud against individuals or against the government, like Paycheck Protection Program loan fraud or Medicaid or Medicare fraud.

#law #immigration#DueProcess#Constitution#14thAmendment

#law #immigration

The move is aimed at #US #citizens not born in the country;…close to 25M #immigrants [are] #naturalized citizens.

At least one person has already been denaturalized. On June 13, a judge ordered the revocation of Elliott Duke’s #citizenship, who uses they/them pronouns. Duke is an #American #military #veteran originally from the #UK who was convicted for distributing child sexual abuse material—something they later admitted they were doing prior to becoming a US citizen.

#law #immigration#DOJ

SCOTUS to rule today on 6 major cases:

Birthright citizenship – Are American Samoans citizens by birth?

Trump immunity – Are ex-presidents immune from prosecution?

Purdue Pharma – Can Sacklers be shielded in opioid deal?

Abortion – Must ERs provide emergency abortions?

Censorship – Did feds unlawfully pressure social media?

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/supreme-court-rulings-birthright-citizenship-5-cases-final-day-rcna215246
#SupremeCourt#Trump#OpioidCrisis#AbortionRights#FreeSpeech#Citizenship#SCOTUS

SCOTUS to rule today on 6 major cases:

Birthright citizenship – Are American Samoans citizens by birth?

Trump immunity – Are ex-presidents immune from prosecution?

Purdue Pharma – Can Sacklers be shielded in opioid deal?

Abortion – Must ERs provide emergency abortions?

Censorship – Did feds unlawfully pressure social media?

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/supreme-court-rulings-birthright-citizenship-5-cases-final-day-rcna215246
#SupremeCourt#Trump#OpioidCrisis#AbortionRights#FreeSpeech#Citizenship#SCOTUS