Naturalization Ceremony, Conversation on Salvadoran Immigration Set for May 6-7

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Approximately 200 people representing 60 countries will take the Naturalization Oath of Allegiance and become United States citizens at a naturalization ceremony hosted by UMass Amherst and the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences (SBS) at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, May 7, in Bowker Auditorium.

State Rep. Mindy Domb will present the keynote speech at the ceremony, which is organized in coordination with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The ceremony will follow a conversation on memory, resistance and Central American migration at noon on Monday, May 6 in Old Chapel.

The interdisciplinary conversation on Salvadoran migration to the U.S. will celebrate a new book by Lynnette Arnold, assistant professor of anthropology. “Living Together Across Borders: Communicative Care in Transnational Salvadoran Families” (Oxford University Press, June 2024) recounts the stories of extended families living stretched between a rural Salvadoran village and U.S. cities. Arnold will explain how families use communicative memory practices to stay connected when they must remain apart for years at a time. She’ll be joined by Diana Sierra Becerra, assistant professor of history, who will discuss how U.S. imperialism and state repression against revolutionary movements relate to understanding the historical roots of migration.

The discussion is sponsored by SBS and the Interdisciplinary Migration Working Group.

Both events are free, open to the public and require no advance registration. More information on the events can be found on the SBS website.