On Feb. 19, 2015 President Shirley Mullen officially became a United States citizen. Her previous citizenship before this date was in Canada, where she was born and grew up.
Mullen has been living in the U.S since 1966, but chose to wait to gain citizenship partially because she has a sentimental attachment to where she grew up. She also felt there was a chance she would go back to Canada at some point in her life. She stated, “As I’ve realized that I’m probably not going to go back to work in Canada ever, it just seemed like the sensible thing to do, to make the change by becoming a citizen.”
Mullen explained that while she was waiting for her interview, which happened in Buffalo, she was surrounded by people who were seeking citizenship to gain refuge in America. She shared that it was a fascinating experience. “I was more affected by the process than I thought I would be,” said Mullen. “There were people from 16 different countries represented the day of the interview. It was moving to see the value of American citizenship through the eyes of people who in a sense needed this… We take safety and freedom for granted.”
To become a U.S citizen one must undergo a process called naturalization. Some of things that can come along with citizenship include taxation, voting rights, military service, and jury duty. According to the official website of homeland security, one must firstly fill out an application which includes questions about family, traveling, and other practical questions. The next step in the process is a background check where they take fingerprints. After this is a test of American history, which is followed by an interview. The last step of the process is a formal swearing in.
Mullen said the experience was a great realization for her of the culture that we experience every day in the U.S and too easily take for granted. People from all over the world are blended together in the same place to find freedom. In most countries there is a sense of never giving up citizenship, but the American citizenship is seen by many as more of a man-made process. Anyone can come to find hope of a bright future.
President Mullen was also reminded that although our citizenship to a country is important, “Our citizenship to a country is always secondary to our citizenship in God’s Kingdom.”