In the front row of a packed second-floor courtroom in downtown Rochester, two children ages 7 and 5 sat on either side of their father, fidgeting with small American flags.
Their mother, Keerttana Dushyanthan, was among 38 people from 18 countries participating in the Western New York District's final naturalization oath ceremony of the year.
“So happy,” she said after the event. “Yeah, feeling is very happy.”
The atmosphere was celebratory yet serious. And, at the same time, orderly and procedural — seemingly removed from the often chaotic, contentious and divisive immigration crackdown happening under the Trump administration.
“I'll be honest. I haven't seen it yet (personally), but I've heard it, and I've seen it on the news, and like, I have friends who are scared being here,” said Yahaya Alhassan, a musician from Ghana who participated in the naturalization ceremony. "I came the right way. I'm legal. So I didn't have any panic or anything.”
Alhassan came to the United States more than a decade ago but didn’t decide to seek citizenship until this year.
“Even though I still have a lot of families back home, but I think at this point, like I feel like this is home for me,” he said. “You know, this is home.”
In recent weeks, the administration has canceled naturalization for people from countries deemed “high risk.” At least one man was turned away from the Rochester ceremony when he arrived with his family to check in. The circumstances were not immediately clear, and U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services referred questions to the court, which does not receive that information. USCIS handles the check-ins.
On the same day of the Rochester ceremony, the administration directed USCIS field offices to start putting forward at least 100 cases for denaturalization each month to strip people of their newly awarded citizenship. That can be done in limited instances, typically involving fraud.
Just over 120 such cases have been filed since 2017, The New York Times reported.
These ceremonies are the final step of an exhaustive series of interviews, screening, and testing — a process that took seven months for Dushyanthan. Her husband became a naturalized citizen six years ago, in the same courthouse, and works for the New York state Thruway Authority.
The number of U.S. naturalizations has been declining in recent years. Still, more than 87,000 New Yorkers became naturalized citizens last year, and nearly 73,000 have done so through three-quarters of the current fiscal year. Next to Albany, Western New York is the smallest district in terms of applications received and approved.
The ceremony itself is brief. There are speakers who talk about registering to vote, proper display and treatment of the U.S. flag, and about standard etiquette around the national anthem.
Magistrate Judge Colleen Holland addressed the group, saying how each of them would strengthen and enhance the fabric of the nation, with what she said were their many talents, voices and ideas. Then, as a group, they raised their right hands and recited an oath to support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America.
“Congratulations,” Holland said, as a man in the back row scanned the audience, beaming. “You are now citizens of the United States.”
There was applause, then everyone stood for the Pledge of Allegiance. Then they came forward to receive certificates as their names and origin country were read: Germany, India, Jamaica, Canada, Ghana, Vietnam, United Kingdom, Mexico, Italy.
“I will celebrate,” Alhassan said as he left the courthouse. “But I still want to take it low key. I want to relax and then talk to my family back home. First I told my mom (about deciding to become a citizen), she was happy. So now I can officially tell her, ‘Yeah, it's happened, yes.’ And then we celebrate together.”
