[0:04] [Music] [0:11] Oh [0:17] [Music] [0:29] [Music] [0:38] [Music] [0:48] [Music] [1:05] [Music] [1:14] [Music] [1:21] [Music] [1:32] [Music] [1:42] [Music] [1:48] [Music] [2:14] [Music] [Applause] [2:40] [Music] [3:04] [Music] [3:11] [Music] [3:17] [Music] [3:27] you [4:35] [Music] [4:42] [Music] [4:49] [Music] [Applause] [5:02] you [5:08] you [5:14] [Music] [5:23] [Music] [5:33] all rise the United States District Court for the [5:38] District of Minnesota is now in session the Honorable David T Schultz presiding [5:50] please be seated good afternoon everyone [5:55] it's okay you can say good afternoon back there we go well I'm my name is [6:05] David Schultz I am a new United States Magistrate Judge so if this is your [6:11] first time through the naturalization ceremony you can take comfort in the knowledge that it's my first time [6:18] through the naturalization ceremony the one thing I can guarantee you is that at the end of this you will be citizens and [6:26] hopefully I'll still be a judge all right I would like to note we have 31 new [6:35] citizens today from 18 different countries we have some guests in the [6:42] room I should introduce to you from Immigration Services mr. Jason Poirier [6:48] and from from the court we have MS Kenya [6:56] McLane and somewhere else here also from [7:02] the Clerk of Courts office is MS Moria McGee he so the national anthem [7:21] [Music] [7:28] oh say can you see by the dawn's early [7:33] light what so proudly the lifeless beam [7:41] whose my stripes and bright stars [7:47] let's fight or the rats we watched were [7:52] so gallantly streaming [7:57] [Applause] oh say does that star-spangled [8:21] [Applause] [8:41] now mr. Poirier from the Department of Immigration Services will read the names [8:47] of each country and ask the new citizens to stand when he is done reading the [8:54] country names all citizens should be standing and then we will proceed to [9:01] administer the oath [Music] [9:14] oh wait [9:28] okay as I read your country could you stand up remain standing until all the [9:35] countries have been read as the judge said earlier 31 citizens are being [9:41] naturalized today with a total number of countries 18 being represented the first [9:46] one is Canada Denmark Egypt [9:55] Germany India Mexico [10:06] the People's Republic of China Philippines South Sudan Thailand Uganda [10:22] United Kingdom Brazil Bulgaria Laos [10:36] Trinidad and Tobago Burma Somalia [10:50] [Applause] [10:59] Your Honor if it pleases the court the government recommends the oath of allegiance to be administered to 31 [11:05] applicants for naturalization who have been interviewed and whose applications have been approved they are permanent [11:12] residents of the United States and have resided with in the st. Paul Minnesota district for the required three-month [11:19] period they are persons of good moral character who are attached to the principles of the Constitution and the [11:25] form of government of the United States the government recommends that the court administer the oath of allegiance as [11:31] required by law so that the applicants may be admitted to citizenship and that [11:37] the name change is requested in the petitions be granted [11:47] Thank You mr. Poirier that motion of course will be granted so new citizens [11:53] fellow citizens if you would raise your right hand and repeat after me I solemnly swear that I will support and [12:03] defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America [12:09] [Music] [12:15] against all enemies foreign and domestic [12:20] that I give up and surrender any [12:26] allegiance to any king queen or Prince [12:34] or or to any state or country [12:43] which I have held up until this day [12:49] that as a citizen of the United States [12:54] I will when lawfully directed bear arms [13:02] or perform noncombatant services in the Armed Forces of the United States [13:09] [Music] [13:15] or I will when directed perform non-military service [13:25] on behalf of the United States I take [13:31] these obligations freely without any [13:37] purpose of evasion and declare today that I am a citizen of [13:45] the United States of America so help me [13:54] God please be seated all congratulations [14:09] everyone this is a fabulous day for you and a [14:15] fabulous day for all of us here today and throughout this country I I have the [14:22] privilege of being able to say that to be the first person to congratulate you [14:27] on your new citizenship and I want to applaud you for all the achievements [14:33] that have led to this day I also want to acknowledge the struggles and the [14:39] hardships that were necessary in making this day possible leaving your homeland often saying [14:46] goodbye to family and friends traveling to this country finding a new home and a [14:52] job adjusting to a new culture and a new way of life and for many of you learning [14:59] the English language I know that for many of you this oath of citizenship [15:05] represents a dream come true it is my sincere wish for each of you that on [15:13] this special day you will continue to dream and that all of your dreams will [15:18] come true I hope that you will not let your dreams die in their sleep I realize [15:26] that for many of you a difficult part of the oath of allegiance is that use [15:32] Foursquare or renounce an allegiance to any foreign state or sovereignty that [15:38] means that you must you must no longer swear allegiance to the government of [15:43] any other country but it doesn't mean that you renounce your love for the land [15:49] where you were born or the people who of their it does not mean that you [15:56] should forget your native language or how to cook the food of your homeland it [16:01] does not mean that you should forget the songs and dances that you learned as a child never forget those things for the [16:09] benefit of yourself and your children your grandchildren and every other citizen of the United States I hope that [16:16] you preserve your native language heritage and culture I can tell you from [16:22] personal experience in my family and the family of my wife that three generations [16:29] back we were all immigrants and to this day we have preserved many of the [16:36] aspects of my families and my wife's family's native culture including [16:42] sometimes unfortunately some of the cuisine that we cooked or they cooked in [16:49] those native lands but doing so to preserve your native culture and your [16:56] heritage it not only enriches the lives of those people in your family but it also [17:02] enriches America and it enriches all of us who live here and who share your [17:09] citizenship as well you know for over 200 years this country has been blessed [17:15] with a constant infusion of new people from all over the world the people who [17:21] have brought their languages their Heritage's their cultural values with them America is not is a combination of [17:30] all of the nations that have come to its shores when you share with all of us the [17:36] best of your culture from the country of your birth you helped to teach us the tolerance that is vital to our continued [17:45] peaceful survival the strength of our nation of our nation lies in the [17:52] diversity of our people for that reason today it is you who bless us now let me [18:01] speak for just a moment about what I think it means to be a citizen of this kind three being the United States citizen [18:09] means first and foremost that you are free the laws of this country and the [18:15] government including the courts are designed to protect your freedom you are [18:22] free to think on your own and to form your own opinions to openly voice those [18:27] opinions even if very few people agree with you you are free to work where you [18:34] want to work read what you want to read say what you want to say and you are [18:40] free to believe what your heart tells you to believe too openly adhere to any [18:46] religion or no religion at all there is no single American way to think [18:53] or believe indeed the conformity of thought and belief would be contrary to [18:59] the principles that this great country were founded on as a US citizen you are [19:08] free to follow your own path wherever it may lead you but with that freedom of [19:14] course comes responsibility the freedom of democracy comes with the responsibility to participate in the [19:22] democratic process by voting and by educating yourself so that you can make informed choices when you do vote [19:30] democracy only works when its members you all of you have developed their [19:37] thoughts and opinions to the point that they can share them by casting a ballot [19:42] by helping to choose those people who will govern all of us the freedom of [19:49] democracy also carries a responsibility to your community to those around you [19:54] democratic societies only work when the people who live there get along when [20:01] they are tolerant of one another I would urge you to care for and be kind to your [20:07] neighbors and the people around you and extend a caring hand to those in need [20:12] our country will only continue to thrive as a great nation [20:18] if we care about our fellow citizens and care about those who are in need as new [20:25] citizens you can set an example of compassion and tolerance for everyone to [20:32] follow one brief word on the responsibilities of citizen as it [20:38] relates to the court you may well be called upon to serve on a jury some time [20:44] a lot of people think that that isn't that it somehow it is an imposition on [20:51] them it is an honor and it is an obligation our justice system is in the [21:00] opinions of many people me included the best justice system in the world but it [21:05] only works when people participate in it so if you find yourself called to jury [21:11] duty don't think this is really an imposition this is inconvenient [21:17] recognize that you are doing something very sacred in this country you are [21:23] helping this country its government and its courts to provide justice to whoever [21:30] comes to court that is an essential role [21:36] going back to giving for our community as John Wesley the former president of [21:41] Yale Law School said do all the good you can do be all the means you can by all [21:48] means you can in all ways you can in all places you can at all times that you can [21:55] to all people you can as long as ever you can if you follow these words make [22:04] them a part of your dream then you will truly be doing your part as a citizen of [22:10] this great country you will make it a better place for all of us our wish for [22:18] all of you our new citizens today is that you have and develop that pride and [22:24] that love of your adopted country that this country has for its people [22:30] including every one of you I am proud to be a citizen of the United States and [22:36] today I am able to say that I am proud to be your fellow citizen [22:42] congratulations to each of you and best wishes as you embark on your new [22:48] American journey thank [Applause] [23:16] [Applause] [23:26] Oh [23:40] [Music] [23:47] yeah [24:12] Oh [24:26] you Oh [24:38] Oh [24:50] Hey [25:26] Oh [26:21] me [26:49] and at this time I believe three students from South you will lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance [26:55] Olga Jenna and Elissa please stand [27:03] patience I pledge allegiance to the flag of the [27:10] United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation [27:16] under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all [27:28] please be seated and you may remain seated until you receive your [27:34] certificate from immigration and if anyone would like to stay around after and have a picture please by all means [27:40] do so [28:04] [Music] there's a problem [29:56] yep [30:03] set before we adjourn ladies and gentlemen just a brief thank you to the [30:10] South View middle school for hosting court today and thank you to court [30:17] personnel and personnel from Immigration Services and I want to thank and recognize Arnold Bigby from the League [30:25] of Women Voters who is here as well attending and most finally important [30:33] congratulations and thank you all for becoming United States citizen Court is [30:40] adjourned [Applause] [30:52] [Music]