PORTLAND, Maine — A diverse group of 51 people from 25 countries raised their right hands, took the oath of allegiance and became Maine’s newest United States citizens during a naturalization ceremony at the Lyman Moore Middle School gymnasium on Friday morning.
Packed onto the pull-out bleachers behind the group, friends and family cheered. Many took pictures. A few wiped away tears.
In the nearby cafeteria, seventh-graders handed out American flags, bottled water, hot coffee and cake, welcoming the new citizens to what students were once taught to call the “American melting pot” but are now learning to think of as the “American salad bowl.”
“In a melting pot, everything gets boiled down into the dominant culture,” said social studies teacher Adam Shaughnessy, “as opposed to a salad, where every vegetable contributes to the overall dish while retaining its own, distinct flavor.”
It’s about celebrating cultural differences, Shaughnessy said, and thinking of those variations as a particular American strength, rather than a fracturing weakness.
The naturalization ceremony comes as Shaughnessy’s students examine the history of American immigration, focusing on the peak Ellis Island years of 1870 to 1920.
Though he’d never heard of the salad bowl concept before, it made sense to Rasha Vukcevic, who was born in Serbia and took the oath on Friday.
“I am who I am,” Vukcevic said, “and that won’t change when I walk out of here today. I’m proud to be Serbian, as well as an American.”
Shaughnessy, who’s own grandparents immigrated from Honduras, said the school has hosted many naturalization ceremonies in the past and doing so allows students to bear real-life witness to the process, rather than only reading about it in a textbook.
“They feel the moment,” he said, “and whenever you can tap into their emotional side, they remember a lot more.”
The new citizens hailed from a variety of countries including Argentina, Burundi, Djibouti, France, India, Ireland, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Norway, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Rwanda, Somalia, Spain and Syria.
As well as watching the ceremony, students mingled with the new citizens and their families, asking questions and getting to know them a bit. Two shy seventh grade boys sat down with Mohamed Ukash, who was naturalized at age 17 and was on hand Friday to see his wife take the oath.
“We’re from Kenya, originally,” Ukash said. “This is my fourth ceremony for members of my family. Hopefully there will be more.”
The students then asked him what language was spoken in Kenya (Swahili), who the most famous Kenyan was (first president Jomo Kenyatta) and what kind of animals live there (lions, giraffes and elephants).
Then, one of the boys asked Ukash where in the United States he would most like to live.
“I’m already here,” he said. “I love Maine.”
Even though his mother and grandparents immigrated from the Philippines, seventh-grader Max Tallada, 12, said he still learned a lot on Friday.
“I never knew what they went through,” Tallada said of his family. “I didn’t know how hard it was to become a citizen, the time they had to wait, the test they had to take.”
While students talked with the new citizens, Portland Food Services Director Nancy McAdam looked out across the room, smiling as she prepared to help serve lunch.
“This is great. My husband became a citizen 40 years ago,” McAdam said, “and they never had anything like this.”
McAdam’s husband is Gary McAdam, a Canadian left winger who played more than 500 National Hockey League games with American teams including the Pittsburgh Penguins, Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils.
At the end of the naturalization ceremony, guest speaker, Deering High School math teacher and South Africa native Kenga Dilamini addressed the new citizens, summing up the day’s celebratory mood.
“Today, you become Americans,” Dilamini said, “and today, America becomes more complete, with you.”
