ABC’s Jeffrey Kofman on Becoming an American Citizen

n February 25, 2010, Jeffrey Kofman, ABC’s Miami-based Correspondent for Florida, the Caribbean and Latin America, became a U.S. citizen. Kofman was born in Toronto, Canada. He moved to the United States in 1997 and joined ABC News in 2001.

He was asked to deliver the keynote address to the 224 other New Americans who were sworn in at the same ceremony at the Miami headquarters of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Here are his remarks:

We are now Americans.

We ARE Americans.

To all of you – all 224 of you – congratulations!

While today’s ceremony makes it official, the significance of this moment actually hit me about six weeks ago, when I came to this same building  for my citizenship interview.  There I sat in the waiting room, perhaps with some of you along with many others.  I could tell some were anxious and nervous, awaiting what I sensed was the most important test of their lives.

I heard my name called out and I was ushered into my interview to be quizzed by a friendly but no-nonsense immigration officer. She went through the same routine that all of you now know. Had I ever been a member of the Communist Party? No. Had I ever been a War Criminal? No. The questions continued. I answered them honestly and appropriately.

Then I was asked to read a sentence to prove my literacy:  ABRAHAM LINCOLN WAS PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, or something like that.

Then I was asked to write a sentence.  I think it was something about George Washington.

And then history quiz. I knew I had to get six out of ten right. I am journalist. I grew up in Canada, English is my native language. So, the process was less daunting for me than it might have been for others. And it helps that I’ve reported and written on American politics. But I humbly did not want to take to take this important moment for granted. And so, like you, I studied the 100 possible questions in the booklet we were all given. For me, the answers to most of the questions were familiar.

And so when I was asked to name one of the two biggest rivers in the United States, I confidently responded: Mississippi.

When I was asked to name the Speaker of the House of Representatives, no problem. I knew that too:  Nancy Pelosi.

But when I was asked what the first ten amendments to the constitution are called, I was glad I had studied, because I confess I did not know the answer to that question until I did my home work: The Bill of Rights.

I was beginning to have fun. I began to feel like a contestant on a TV game show. And I guess in a certain way that’s what we all were. In this case the prize behind Door #1 is the passport so much of the world can only dream of.

Like all of you, I passed. I got the first six questions right.  But I suddenly found myself wanting to answer more questions to prove my worthiness.  So I was a little disappointed when I didn’t get to answer questions 7, 8, 9 and 10. Clearly, the process only needed correct answers for six questions, so no more were asked.

When the interview was over the immigration officer reached to the far side of her desk and grabbed a bulky rubber stamp. I watched as it hit the paper. When she lifted it, it left behind a big red imprint. In the middle, the single word “APPROVED.” As I looked at my application and at the bright red stamp, it hit me.

I am now an American.

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U.S.-Canadian marriage costly for couple

Newlyweds Matt and Heather Lopresto knew that every marriage has its ups and downs; they didn’t know that living together would be so difficult.

Matt, originally from Corning and now living in Rochester, is a U.S. citizen. Heather, who met her husband in 2005 when both were students at the Elim Bible Institute in Lima, is from Hamilton, Ontario, and a Canadian citizen. They thought that once they were married, it would be simple for Heather to get her “green card” and live and work legally here with Matt until they have enough money to finish their degrees and start the family they both want.
For more than a year, they had traveled back and forth to Canada without incident until June 26 (the day before the wedding at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington) when Matt told the Canadian border guards that marriage was the reason for his visit.

“I was turned away at the border,” Matt says. “I had to prove I had a means of departing and that I would return.” He hurried back to Rochester, got a letter from his boss indicating that he has a job, made a copy of his apartment lease, and purchased a return airplane ticket (even though he planned to drive home). He stayed in Canada as a visitor for several weeks before coming home to Rochester, but that’s when the couple realized living together would not be as simple as they hoped.

The U.S. and Canadian governments want to be certain that a marriage between citizens of their countries is legitimate, that the citizen spouse can support the non-citizen, and that the newcomer will not need public assistance, says Rochester lawyer Margaret Catillaz, an expert in immigration law.

Since Heather and Matt were married, both their passports have been flagged and when they visit, they are always detained for questioning. Even though she’s done nothing wrong, Heather said during a recent visit, she always feels as if she’s in trouble.

Matt and Heather just want to be together.

And money is the only thing standing in their way. It costs up to $2,000 to apply for legal resident status and complete the required procedures. And right now, neither Matt and Heather, nor their families, have the money. Heather is unemployed and Matt washes windows and cleans gutters. Rent, car payments, food — that’s all they can afford.

Read the full story on Democrat and Chronicle