Excluding cancels US citizenship ceremonies

Around a dozen of us, they entered an American immigration office in Virginia on Saturday morning, people born around the world are excited to take the last step to become American citizens.

We squeezed our naturalization notifications as we submitted security and arranged at the registration desk. We would soon raise our right hands and take an oath of allegiance to the United States at a ceremony known as solemn and festive. Wearing small American flags, we would spend citizens.

But then, abruptly, we learned that the ceremony had been canceled because of the suspension of the government.

“You had to be notified,” the desk officer said.

None of us have received emails or phone calls. The entrance staff released us without warning, raising the possibility that they were not notified.

Later, when I checked the USCIS website (USCIS) website, it decreased temporarily.

When I returned online, I saw that my meeting was canceled days earlier “due to unforeseen circumstances”. If you hadn’t checked the website yourself, you would never know.

“We are sorry for the inconvenience that can cause,” the notice said.

Around me in the office, the disappointment quickly became confusion.

A woman in Hijab quietly asked me if I had been rejected, worried that it could be because of her clothing.

A man had gathered his family to celebrate his last step to become a US citizen just to leave alarmed and uncertain.

Several people seemed really scared, wondering how the delay could affect their work, life and plans.

It was more than inconvenience.

Some of us had spent years in documents and interviews, as well as preparation for the citizenship test. After more than a decade on a green card, I decided to become a citizen and vote. We were all stuck in your limbs now.

We were told in the office to return on November 1st. However, with the ongoing federal exclusion, there is a chance that can slip away.

The immigration service is largely funded by application fees and therefore usually remains open during government suspension.

But its director Joseph Edlow said in an X publication that services aimed at society, such as interviews and naturalization ceremonies, can be delayed. He added that the agency “regrets the negative effects, but it must ensure that it is in accordance with the law.”

It is unclear how many USCIS appointments or oath ceremonies have been canceled throughout the country. The services list the closure of the field office on a web page, but it does not provide amounts for canceled ceremonies. Anecdotal reports are distributed online for other oath ceremonies that have been defective.

What is also unclear is when the government will open again.

Republicans and Democrats have been closed due to state funding since October 1, leading to a suspension, which has put over 700,000 federal workers on unpaid leave.

Add the many rapid changes made to US immigration policies over the last nine months, and anxiety among those of us who work to become American citizens can only rise. The effects of Washington’s impasse are spread in everyday life – and possibly future – those of us who hope to call the US a permanent home.