Northern Manhattan Coalition for Immigrant Rights (NMCIR) successfully held the National Constitution Day and Citizenship Day in the United States assisting dozens of legal permanent residents to determine their eligibility and complete applications for American citizenship. The event was held this Saturday, September 17th at the offices of NMCIR located at 5030 Broadway, Suite 639, New York, NY. In said event were present attorney Angela Fernandez, Executive Director of that entity and volunteer attorneys and certified paralegals by the Board of Immigration Appeals, who dedicated the day to assist legal permanent residents from the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Ecuador, Paraguay, Argentina, Peru, Togo and other countries around the world.
Alejandro Paulino, native of the Dominican Republic and Washington Heights resident, recently earned his Certificate of Naturalization after applying to citizenship with the assistance of NMCIR. Mr. Paulino in an event organized by the New Americans Campaign and the New America Media on September 8th stressed the importance of obtaining US citizenship by declaring that "we have more rights now" as a result of becoming a U.S. citizen. "The process was simple, they taught me English classes, assisted me with the application and helped me to obtain my citizenship," noted Paulino.
On the occasion of National Citizenship Day, NMCIR’s Executive Director, Angela Fernandez, Esq. mentioned: "The decision to become an American citizen is essential in the lives of immigrants, it is a step towards conquering the American Dream for us immigrants. On behalf of NMCIR and for me, we are very proud to honor the National Citizenship Day dedicating this day to assist the community in determining the eligibility of candidates and completing citizenship applications. "
NMCIR worked all day providing legal assistance and successfully completing multiple citizenship applications of eligible candidates. Angela Fernandez, Esq. with her team interviewed one on one each candidate providing them with the information and legal advice pertinent to acquiring citizenship. "Citizenship applications require adequate legal technical assistance due to the fact that many legal permanent residents may face unexpected consequences by filing a citizenship application. These consequences, sometimes dire, could even include deportation of the legal permanent resident, reason which it is imperative that the resident has adequate guidance of a lawyer or certified paralegal, as the ones provided for free at our organization in citizenship matters", said Fernandez.
NMCIR proudly celebrated the National Day of Citizenship and intends to continue its work to assist and represent our immigrant communities in the state of New York through advocacy, legal immigration and the fight against deportations. If you have questions, please visit the organization.
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In addition, NMCIR will offer extra resources for those applying for US Citizenship every Thursday at our office located at 5030 Broadway (@ 214th Street) Suite 639. Whether you just want a consultation, or you have already decided to file your documents, we are here to help. As always, walk-ins are welcome, and we will continue to offer citizenship services during the rest of the week. This is made possible thanks to generous support from our partners: USCIS, Hispanic Federation, New York City Council Members Ydanis Rodriguez and Mark Levine, New York State Office of New Americans, NALEO Education Fund, and our other grassroots supporters.
