Inside the Abraham A. Ribicoff United States Court House Friday morning, Amanda Maria Salazar Toro, 65, of Darien sat in the back of the courtroom holding a small American flag in her hand. After 15 years, she was finally becoming a U.S. citizen.
“I feel so happy because I feel like I achieved my American dream,” she said in Spanish outside the courthouse.
She was one of 25 people who took the oath to become a naturalized citizen. A total of 16 countries were represented among them. Many came from various Latin American countries like Ecuador, Guatemala, Bolivia and Peru, as well as Colombia, where Salazar Toro is from.
“I love Colombia because it’s my land, but the situation over there is really difficult,” she said in Spanish.
Many Colombians are not seeing much progress in their country across several sectors, according to Salazar Toro, including labor, education and the health care system. Colombia’s president Gustavo Petro has faced opposition for his efforts in transforming the country.
A long journey to citizenship
Salazar Toro said she came to the United States in 2005 to find better work and educational opportunities. Salazar Toro struggled to get her citizenship, in part, because of her difficulty with learning English, she said.
Her son, Sebastian Salazar, 32, migrated to the United States within four months of her arrival to achieve his American dream of having a family, buying a house and finding success.
Both mother and son have felt the fear around the immigrant community with President Donald Trump’s return to office.
“I feel bad for the people that migrate here and are sent back because it’s really difficult for someone to come here,” Salazar Toro said. “It’s too difficult.”
With Trump prioritizing mass deportations throughout the first few weeks of his second term, Salazar Toro says she feels less vulnerable because of her citizenship.
“Now, I feel like I’m safe and more secure, because you definitely feel scared that they’ll send you back to your country,” she said in Spanish.
Her son Sebastian, who also earned U.S. citizenship, hasn’t noticed day-to-day life change since Trump has taken office.
“I haven’t really talked to people and asked them about that,” Sebastian said. “They feel a bit uncomfortable about [the Trump administration].”
Regardless of Trump’s actions targeting immigrants, Salazar said those who are on the path to citizenship should stick to it.
“Don’t give up,” he said. “Focus on it. Make this your dream and go for it.”
Elected officials celebrate what it means to be a citizen
Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont and U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who attended the ceremony, asserted the United States is a nation of immigrants.
In his remarks, Lamont quoted former Republican President Ronald Reagan.
“You can go to live in France, but you cannot become a Frenchman … but anyone, from any corner of the Earth, can come to live in America and become an American,” Lamont said.
Blumenthal reminded the new U.S. citizens of their responsibilities, like voting and jury duty. He said those responsibilities also include speaking out about those who govern and run the country.
“You should be critical of our country,” Blumenthal said.
Despite the ongoing tension with the Trump administration, Salazar Toro is hopeful that the immigration process can improve.
“A change for the people who came to this country to achieve the [American] dream,” she said in Spanish, “like I did.”
