Duckworth Recognizes Soon-To-Be Naturalized U.S. Citizens in Grayslake

Duckworth Recognizes Soon-To-Be Naturalized U.S. Citizens in Grayslake

[GRAYSLAKE, IL] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today participated in a Naturalization Recognition Ceremony hosted by Mano a Mano Family Resource Center in Grayslake to welcome more than 50 residents from five different countries who will soon be sworn in as naturalized United States citizens. In her remarks to the future Americans, Duckworth highlighted the importance of diversity in strengthening our nation and her love for our country. Photos from today's ceremony are available on the Senator's website.

"For everyone here today, whether your journey started in Mexico or Ukraine, your hard work and dedication make your stories the American Dream," Duckworth said. "Despite the fear some have tried to strike in our hearts over the past year, diversity isn't just a feel-good issue-it makes us smarter by widening our perspectives. I want to thank you for making this nation better and for making America more American."

Full remarks as prepared below:

Hello, everyone! It's an honor to be here today with Senator Durbin.

First off, I want to say congratulations!

We may hail from different counties and come from different countries… we may say different prayers and have different skin tones...

But we're here today because we all love this nation, and each of us knows that our differences make this country stronger...

We know that our diversity is what has always made America not just great, but good.

I'm an American, but was born in Thailand. And my family only came back to this country when I was a teenager.

We struggled.

My mom was kept half a world away from us for six months, forced to stay behind as-unlike me, my brother and my father-she wasn't born an American citizen.

There were times I wasn't sure if I'd get a warm meal at night. There were times we didn't know if we'd make rent.

But over and over again, the generosity of our neighbors helped us scrape by… keeping us from going hungry… keeping a roof over our heads… making America feel more like home with every day that passed.

To me, that is America at its best:

A 3.5-million-square-mile community where someone who isn't wealthy would still reach into their own pocket to help a stranger… no matter the country where they were born or how fluent they are in English.

That remains true today, despite some of the rhetoric we've heard recently…

Despite the horrifying events we've seen unfold in our communities over the last year...

Despite the fear that some have tried to strike in our hearts as they abuse their power.

America is still filled with those generous strangers… with people, like those of you raising your right hands and taking the Oath of Allegiance today or in the coming months, who know the true power of diversity.

Because diversity isn't "just" a feel-good issue.

Diversity makes us smarter, as it widens our perspectives.

It makes us sharper, as it shatters our assumptions.

And it makes us stronger, as it deepens our bonds… leading us to treat as equals those who look, love or speak differently than we do ourselves.

You know, I've lived my entire adult life under an oath to protect and defend this nation… first in the Army, and now in the Senate.

So keeping our country the strongest it can be means something to me.

But despite what some folks suggest, you can't measure the strength of this nation by the size of our defense budget or the height of our border walls.

And you certainly can't measure it by the number of masked, armed agents patrolling our streets trying to intimidate our families.

No.

Instead, the true strength of America lies in our values.

I still remember-this must've been in 1995 or '96-being on an Army mission in Egypt.

I was in the Illinois National Guard, so when my crew climbed out of our helicopter, I was surrounded by a bunch of Polish-American and Irish-American guys.

After all, we were the Chicago Guard unit.

Some local villagers came to look at our aircraft and asked if they could get in.

One of my buddies responded that they only could if they got the permission of the platoon leader-and then he pointed at me.

The locals' response was, "The short Asian girl?!"

"Yup," my guys said. "She's in charge."

They could hardly believe that among all those tall, blonde, white guys, I was the one in command.

That's the story of this country. That's the beauty of this country:

That the impossible can happen to any one of us…

That if you work hard, it doesn't matter where you come from…

You can rise, rise, rise.

We are a nation of immigrants… a union that, yes, at times has been anything but united.

And yes, we've had moments when bigotry has prevailed…

When we've treated our neighbors as "less-than" because of their race or their religion.

We've seen far, far too much of that recently.

But time after time, we've refused to give in to that darkness. And we've come back stronger, over and over and over again.

Look, the tragic reality is that there will always be people who want to build walls.

But the miracle of America is that when it looks like those worst instincts are set to prevail, we come together and resist.

Black, white, Latino, Asian, immigrant, natural-born citizen, you name it… we march.

We speak out.

We demand justice… fairness… equality.

We bend the moral arc of the universe, not waiting for anyone else to do it for us.

Because we know that this country can only live up to its true potential… that it can only be that more perfect union our founders dreamed of… when its states are united and its people undivided.

You know, in many ways, my story is the American Dream.

But for everyone here today… whether your journey began in Mexico or Malaysia… Ukraine or India… Haiti or Honduras… Russia or Algeria… your hard work… your dedication… make your stories the American Dream now, too.

So I want to thank you for making this nation better… for making America more American.

I couldn't be prouder to soon call all of you my fellow citizens.

Congratulations again!

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