Brianna Vazquez wiped away tears as she took the Oath of Allegiance to become a U.S. citizen in L.A. Tuesday, one of 150 Ventura County residents in a crowd of 5,000. “I will never forget this. I love this country so much,” Vazquez said. “I’m really excited to be able to contribute more for this country. I really appreciate everything that it’s done for me.” Vazquez, 30, came moved from Mexico when she was 7 years old. She now lives in Ventura with her 7-year-old daughter, who sat at her side during the ceremony. They wore matching dresses and held identical American flags. “She’s very excited that Mommy will get to vote and become an American like her,” said Vazquez. A few citizenship facts: •To become a citizen requires a minimum of five years of legal residence in the country, or less for spouses of American citizens. •It typically takes the Los Angeles District office four to five months to approve a permanent resident for citizenship. •Nearly 25 percent of the new citizens who participated in Tuesday’s ceremonies were Mexican nationals. About one of every 10 people were originally from the Philippines. •In the past year, the Los Angeles District office — which oversees Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties — processed more than 93,000 lawful permanent residents to become U.S. citizens.
Posted on: Wed, 15 Jan 2014 05:29:02 +0000
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