Photo By Sgt. Roland Hale | Pfc. Jose Murcia, a Soldier with 1-1 ARB, CAB, 1st Inf. Div., and native of El...... read more read more
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CAMP VICTORY, Iraq – Saddam Hussein’s Al-Faw Palace stood for years as an example of Iraqi corruption – its grandeur almost mocking the nearby slums of Baghdad. But the palace stood for something different this Independence Day. Its marble walls were draped in red, white and blue and its rotundas shook with the roar of “The Star Spangled Banner” as American troops held a special Fourth of July ceremony.
Vice President Joe Biden and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, attended a naturalization ceremony in the palace on Camp Victory, watching as 156 U.S. service members became naturalized U.S. citizens. The service members became citizens through the naturalization process, which requires applicants to show good moral character and live in the U.S. for five years.
“The one lesson every country has to learn…is what you symbolize here today,” said Biden, “and that is that there is strength in diversity. Our Iraqi brethren are learning that right now as they held a free election.”
Biden also thanked the service members for choosing America as their new home and credited them with contributing to the success of the Iraq war.
“We owe all of you. And we owe your families,” said Biden.
Three of the participants were Soldiers from the 1st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment, Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, which is deployed to Camp Taji.
“To finally become a U.S. citizen – in a combat zone, in Saddam’s palace, on the Fourth of July – I think it’s wonderful, a great experience, something you dream of,” said Pfc. Jose Murcia, a 30-year-old native of El Salvador.
Murcia came to the U.S. in 2001 on a student visa, studying in California. He joined the Army in 2009 and like the two other Soldiers in his unit, applied for citizenship through an Army Community Services program on Fort Riley, Kan. Citizenship is not a requirement to join the military, but non-citizens cannot get security clearances or become commissioned officers.
During the ceremony, Murcia and the other service members were led in the oath of citizenship by an official from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office. This is the 17th such ceremony in Iraq coordinated by the USCIS and the military.
The ceremony ended with a message from President Barack Obama, which was broadcast to troops in Iraq and Afghanistan:
“We need only to draw upon the perseverance of those before us,” said Obama, “our founders who declared and fought for their ideals; our ancestors who emigrated here and struggled to build a better future for their children.”
| Date Taken: | 07.04.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 07.05.2010 12:59 |
| Story ID: | 52395 |
| Location: | CAMP VICTORY, IQ |
| Web Views: | 262 |
| Downloads: | 134 |
This work, Deployed soldiers granted citizenship in July 4 ceremony, by SGT Roland Hale, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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