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Welcome to a special midweek message from the North Dakota Democratic-NPL Insider, a newsletter that features regular updates about upcoming Dem-NPL events, legislative happenings, and news that affects North Dakotans!
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Citizenship should never be passive
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My fellow Americans: good morning, congratulations, and welcome to the citizenry of these United States.
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It is such a privilege to be with you today because I know how hard you’ve worked to get here; how long, difficult, and at times uncertain your journey has been. For some, it began as a search for better economic opportunities; for others, maybe a Hollywood love story. And for many, violence and strife at home made coming here a matter of survival. No matter your personal circumstances, that you each persevered speaks to your dedication and grit; that we, as a nation, welcomed you speaks to what truly makes America great.
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It cannot be ignored, though, that we gather today at a perilous time for those seeking to call America their home. As you’ve learned in studying our country’s history, America’s relationship with immigration has been plagued by cyclical periods of suspicion, restriction, and outright hostility—a near constant thread across our 250 years as a nation, with only the identities of the targeted and disfavored groups changing.
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An indivisible nation where a literal Statue of Liberty welcomes the poor and tired into our safe harbors
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Yet against this checkered history, a deeper truth endures: we are, always have been, and always will be a nation of immigrants—an embodiment of “e pluribus unum,” out of many, one. An indivisible nation where a literal Statue of Liberty welcomes the poor and tired into our safe harbors. My steadfast hope is that we recommit to these ideals, remaining a beacon—that shining city upon a hill—not only for those seeking refuge but also for the world’s best and brightest who wish to build a life here.
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These values are not incompatible at all with being a nation of laws, secure borders, and orderly migration. I personally have worked to enforce our immigration laws, serving as an immigration court prosecutor for the federal government, where it was my duty to argue for the removal of people from this country when they had no lawful right to remain. Some had committed serious crimes and earned their exile. But far more often, I faced people simply seeking safety and opportunity for their families.
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Even then, when the law required me to argue for their removal, I did. When the law offered them relief, I respected the courts' decisions granting it. Above all, though, the experience taught me to uphold the law with humility and humanity. The people I encountered were not faceless case numbers. They were parents, students, spouses, workers, survivors. Above all, fellow human beings. Like you and me, each with a story. Each with hopes and fears not so different from mine. If I saw an opportunity to better my family’s economic future, would I not seize it? If love brought me to these shores, would I not follow it here? If my family were being threatened by criminal gangs or our own government, would I not seek refuge elsewhere?
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So I challenge you to resist any urge to pull up the ladder behind you. Instead, reach back with an open hand. Help others climb up to join you.
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Each of you answered questions like these—and your answers led you her to this moment. Today, you have earned the right to call yourself an American. I hope you share the pride I feel for each of you. I hope you also carry gratitude for those who helped you achieve your dreams. Family and friends. Attorneys and advocates. Even those government bureaucrats who kept needing just one more form completed. You could not have attained this life-changing goal without help. So I challenge you to resist any urge to pull up the ladder behind you. Instead, reach back with an open hand. Help others climb up to join you. That, too, is part of the American spirit.
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It is also but one of the many responsibilities you now bear as an American citizen. Citizenship should never be passive. You each bring talents and experiences we need. Yes, be productive workers, follow the law, and raise your families with care and intention. But those necessary obligations alone are insufficient to meet the expectations of citizenship into which you now enter.
To fully live up to your oath, you must be an active participant in securing a prosperous future for our country. At a minimum, exercise your newly bestowed right to vote—and consider doing even more: Ask tough questions of elected officials; get involved in campaigns; even run for office yourself if no one on the ballot represents your values.
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To do these simple things, they reminded us, is to prove once again that “hope and resilience are the enemy of fear.”
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But civic engagement goes well beyond government and politics; it must be an everyday discipline. Just this month, tragedy struck in Minnesota when State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband were assassinated in a horrendous act of political violence. In a moving tribute, their adult children issued a call to each of us to, in their words, “do something, whether big or small, to make our community just a little better for someone else.” Their humble suggestions are things each of us can do even still today: plant a tree, visit a park, pet a dog, cook and share a meal, take up a new hobby, or simply stand up for something you believe in.
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To do these simple things, they reminded us, is to prove once again that “hope and resilience are the enemy of fear.” And you, new citizens, know something about both. Your hope and your resilience brought you here today to this celebration.
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So on behalf of my colleagues in the North Dakota State Legislature, we join you in that celebration. We are so proud to welcome you as fellow citizens of the United States and so glad that you are here and working alongside us to build a better future for of our state, region, and country. Congratulations again, and we cannot wait to see the legacy each of you leave on the United States of America.
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The Century Club supports our year-round work to build party infrastructure supporting candidate recruitment, local district and regional leadership, issue-based education, and tools for Dem-NPL success.
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Help us elect great Democrats up and down the ballot!
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The North Dakota Democratic-NPL is launching a new grassroots program called “Neighbor to Neighbor” where volunteers will connect with voters in your community to elect Democrats up and down the ballot. As a volunteer, you will be responsible for connecting with voters in 25 homes in your neighborhood or friends and family to help elect Democrats up and down the ballot about 3-4 times this year.
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Grassroots organizers are the lifeblood of the Dem-NPL! Sign up to volunteer with the Dem-NPL!
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