New Americans Campaign celebrates citizenship by action on Citizenship Day

 SAN FRANCISCO – In 17 cities nationwide, hundreds of residents eligible for citizenship will celebrate Citizenship Day by completing their citizenship applications.


Citizenship Day is celebrated on Sept. 17, the same day as Constitution Day (see above). In 1939, newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst advocated a day to celebrate US Citizenship, and in 1940 Congress designated the third Sunday in May as “I Am an American Day.” Later, President Harry Truman signed into law Citizenship Day to replace I Am an American Day. At the same time, a few years later, the week of Sept. 17-23 was proclaimed Constitution Week. Finally, in 2004, Congress
and the President designated Sept. 17 as “Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.”
 
This year, over the course of September, the New Americans Campaign’s partners will hold citizenship workshops in cities like Los Angeles and Houston. National partners will launch initiatives with mayors and businesses. Along the way, hundreds of legal permanent residents will complete their citizenship applications at citizenship workshops nationwide. 
 
“There are many reasons to become a citizen – citizens stand to earn up to 11 percent more in wages over a lifetime, they have access to more and better-paying jobs, and they can help their kids under 18 become citizens,” said Eric Cohen, Executive Director of Immigrant Legal Resource Center, the lead organization for the New Americans Campaign. “But it goes beyond that – citizenship also gives you a full chance to contribute to American society by empowering you with voice and help our nation prosper. This Citizenship Day, we’re helping hundreds reach that opportunity.”

The New Americans Campaign is an innovative and unprecedented effort that brings together a coalition of leading national immigration and service organizations, and several dozen local service providers across 17 different cities to help aspiring Americans reach their dream of citizenship.

To learn more about the campaign, please visit www.newamericanscampaign.org..

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