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17 people from 12 countries sworn in as U.S. citizens at Tulsa ceremony
Summary
Seventeen people from a dozen countries took the oath of citizenship at Tulsa City Hall. City leaders urged new citizens to engage locally and offered voter-registration and education resources.
Seventeen people from 12 countries took the oath of U.S. citizenship during a naturalization ceremony at Tulsa City Hall, officials said.
Gerald Fritz, acting field office director for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Oklahoma City field office, opened the ceremony and led applicants through the oath. “Congratulations on becoming America's newest citizen,” he said after the applicants repeated the pledge.
Mayor Nichols welcomed the new citizens and emphasized the role of diversity in Tulsa's identity. “How cool is it that just a second ago, you stood up, not an American citizen, and you sat down, and for the first time, you sat down as an American citizen,” Mayor Nichols said. He described elements of a lapel pin he wore — representing the Arkansas River, Tulsa’s oil founding, the city’s Indigenous homelands, and the Tulsa Race Massacre — and said the symbols point toward the city’s future.
Nam Lun, the city's immigrants and refugee affairs manager in the Department of Resilience and Equity, congratulated the new citizens and described programs meant to support integration. “I oversee New Tulsa initiative, which includes making Tulsa a welcoming place for everyone who wants to make it their home,” Nam Lun said, and encouraged attendees to sign up for boards, commissions and volunteer opportunities. He also noted that the League of Women Voters was available to help new citizens register to vote and that a Tulsa Community College representative had GED and TOEFL voucher information.
The ceremony program named the countries represented; Gerald Fritz said there were 12 countries in total. The transcript lists Bangladesh, Belarus, Burma, Guatemala, India, Italy, Mexico, Nigeria, the Philippines, Trinidad and Tobago and Vietnam; one country named by the officiant was not specified in the record.
Officials invited the new citizens to pose for photographs with city leaders; the city said photos would be posted on the City of Tulsa website and Facebook page and that the event was recorded and available through TGOV online.
No formal votes or policy decisions were made during the ceremony.
