‘Spirit of freedom’: Nearly 200 people become citizens at WMass ceremony

AMHERST — Rodrigo Almeida, his wife Olivia and their two sons, aged four and two, sat on the steps of Bowker Auditorium waving American flags as extended family took photographs of them.

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Almeida, a Bedford resident originally from Brazil, said he has been going through the immigration process to become a citizen for three-and-a-half years. Now that the day was finally here, he was happy and relieved to be an American.

“The U.S. received me as an immigrant, a worker, a father, and now, I’m an American,” he said with a smile on his face. “This country is about the spirit of freedom.”

Almeida was one of 193 people from more than 50 countries, including the Dominican Republic, Laos, Kazakhstan and Albania, who became American citizens Monday at the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s fourth consecutive naturalization ceremony.

In fiscal year 2024, almost 1 million people were naturalized, according to data from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Loud cheers erupted from the crowd when Judge Elizabeth D. Katz, a bankruptcy judge for the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts, announced to a packed auditorium they were all now U.S. citizens.

“We all have stories to tell,” said Katz. “My grandparents are Polish, Lithuanian and Russian. Here I am three generations later, a federal judge.”

Katz underscored the importance of voting — a right that democracy affords. “Voting sends a message about what matters,” she said. “Without voting, there is no democracy.”

Javier Reyes, chancellor of UMass Amherst, attended the ceremony. Reyes and his wife immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico more than 25 years ago — first going to Texas for a doctoral degree, then Arkansas to teach, before landing up in Massachusetts.

Reyes spoke of his journey to citizenship, reflecting on the challenges he and his wife faced and the perseverance it took to be sponsored for a green card and later apply for citizenship.

“I never would’ve dreamed in 1998 that I’d be a naturalized citizen in 2016,” said Reyes, prompting the audience to cheer and applaud.

Reyes acknowledged that it was a difficult time politically to become a citizen in 2016. And he said it is a fractured time in the country today.

For months, the Trump administration has been cracking down on immigration. The White House has boasted deporting 2.5 million people — 1.9 million of whom self deported — since President Donald Trump took office a second time.

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The Associated Press reported that the Trump administration, while still aiming for lofty deportation goals, has appeared to have recalibrated its approach to immigration. The AP reported this month that the administration seems to be moving away from the aggressive tactics and shifting to a quieter approach.

“Some of you might be feeling the same way today,” Reyes told the packed auditorium. “The U.S. presents ideals of liberty; it’s a tremendous honor to be part of America’s story.”

Samira Fawel and members of her immediate family moved to the United States a decade ago from Ghana for better opportunities.

Today, Fawel, 24, is an American citizen, joining her older brother, who serves in the U.S. Army.

“It means everything to be American,” she said with a bright smile. She wore a white dress and a cardigan with yellow and white flowers on it.

“My mom didn’t get to go to college. She didn’t even get to finish high school. I did both,” she said. “I hope one day I can become a doctor.”

Jessica and her parents, Mary and Simon — all of whom requested their last names not be used in the story — didn’t travel far to get their citizenship. The three moved to Western Massachusetts from Canada 15 years ago.

“We moved as a family,” said Jessica. “This is the culture that adopted us and it’s not so dissimilar to where we are from.”

Mary, Jessica’s mother, said it is important for her to give back to the community that welcomed them so many years ago. Jessica said the path to citizenship was “easy, straightforward.”

“We’re privileged that it wasn’t complicated,” she said. “It took two years.”

Jessica said the timing to apply for citizenship didn’t feel right until recently.

“These are difficult, important times, and we felt it was important to become citizens,” she said. Simon, Jessica’s father, chimed in that he is most looking forward to voting. “There is nothing standing in our way,” Jessica said.

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