An immigrant rights organization is set to assist millions of permanent residents who are eligible for naturalization to become citizens throughout this month. September is Citizenship Month, with Citizenship Day falling on the 17th. In honor of the occasion, an announcement was made by the Educational Fund of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) that it will hold a series of events across the United States to help millions of legal residents to gain citizenship.
The organization claims that nearly 50% of the 8.8 million legal permanent residents in the United States who are eligible to become citizens are Latinos and that many are prevented from completing the naturalization process by a lack of resources and by language barriers.
“We need to break down the barriers that are keeping millions of hardworking and talented legal permanent residents from contributing fully to our nation’s economy and society,” says the executive director of the NALEO Educational Fund, Arturo Vargas. “Throughout the month of September, we will do our part to help as many potential new Americans as possible successfully navigate and complete the naturalization process.”
The NALEO Educational Fund has teamed up with organizations such as the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the New American Campaign in its bid to remove many of the difficulties that prevent legal permanent residents from obtaining US Citizenship. Public events and workshops will be held across the United States to offer assistance, information, and resources to potential new Americans.