100 People from More Than 30 Countries Become American Citizens

The largest number of immigrants came from Somalia and Iraq

MOORHEAD, Minn. — Minnesota just got a bit more diverse as about 100 people from over 30 countries were sworn in as American citizens.

Ralf Mehnert–Meland, who’s originally from Germany, became a U.S. citizen 18 years ago, and now he gets to welcome the nation’s newest citizens in a full–circle moment.

“I became a citizen a month after the [9/11] attacks and it was a very emotional moment then and actually still is. It’s a big deal, it’s a big oath you take, a big step you take, and I’ve never regretted it and I love being a citizen,” he said.

He says he was driven to become a citizen so he’d be able to vote.

Other immigrants came to America in search of a better place to live.

Ameera Al Maliki, speaking through an interpreter, says her native Iraq was not a good place to be.

“[I] didn’t feel comfortable, it wasn’t safe to stay over there,” she said.

Certificate of citizenship in hand, “very happy, very excited,” she said.

Mohammed and Ahmed Al Qaysi, 10 and 12, also from Iraq, saw their parents naturalized.

“I’m very excited about them,” Mohammed said.

They describe what they remember from their native country.

“It was like they didn’t have a lot of laws, you can hear a lot of horns,” Mohammed said.

“And there’s a lot of problems there too,” Ahmed said.

As the new Americans take the oath of allegiance, they start a new chapter in their lives.

“What I experience here is not equal to Liberia,” Zoe Massaley said.

They’re encouraged to contribute to society, to vote and to embrace all the new freedoms they have in America.

“Bring your culture into this country, because diversity is what makes us so great,” Mehnert-Meland said.

According to the American Immigration Council, about eight percent of people in Minnesota are immigrants.