Posted on 10/22/2017 6:56:25 AM PDT by mandaladon
Escondido resident Jovita Mendez was among 700 immigrants naturalized in a U.S. citizenship ceremony in San Diego on Oct. 18 – but her struggle to get there included many hurdles
Southern California resident Jovita Mendez doesn’t speak English. She can’t read or write, in any language. But she longed for a better future for herself and, this week, she achieved that by finally becoming a U.S. citizen. “I didn’t think that I would be able to accomplish this, but I did it,” Mendez told NBC 7 in Spanish, holding back tears after being naturalized in a ceremony alongside 700 immigrants in downtown San Diego on Thursday. “I did it because my kids are here. They told me I needed to do this for myself, to have a future here,” she added. “I’m happy.” Mendez, originally from Mexico, has lived in the United States for 20 years. She has always wanted to become a U.S. citizen but illiteracy and the language barrier have held her back. “I don’t know how to read, I don’t know how to write,” Mendez explained. Until recently, she had never had the confidence to take the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) naturalization test, which consists of 10 civics questions randomly selected from a list of 100 questions. To pass, applicants must orally answer correctly at least six out of the 10 questions. The only way to effectively do that is to study all 100 civics questions, which cover everything from U.S. history to politics.
Mendez, encouraged by her children, decided to take the test. She took classes led by local Maribel Solache. “She’s a special case – she doesn’t know how to read or write,” Solaches told NBC 7. “When she came to me, she was filled with insecurities and fear.
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcsandiego.com ...
20 years and didn’t think of learning English at night school? Or even learn to read in Spanish? I’m confused about how this is such a win for America!!!
Oh goodie, someone else who will be unemployable, or a future news caster for NBC
English is supposed to be a requirement for citizenship.
Trump needs to restore this requirement.
And now we know why ballots are printed in different languages.
Would like to know how many "English illiterates" used those non-English ballots in both Ca and NYS
While commendable on some small level, after having a lifetime to resolve being illiterate, she is still illiterate...and can’t speak English. Sheesh! Talk about being a slacker.
That’s an easy one. Democrat voter. It doesn’t appear she actually “passed” the test, she didn’t learn about the United States, she simply memorized answers.
Longing for a better future with zero effort. Yay! A new Democrat voter!
It’s only a win for the Demoncrats, who will now have another reliable, “legal” vote.
And her naturalization certificate is in English. How does she know what it says?
First I had heard of this waiver.
Is this new?
We are saying we will grant citizenship to someone who doesn’t read or speak English just because they are older than 55?
I agree it’s commendable that she finally took some classes. But that shouldn’t be enough. Are they going to tell her how to vote, too?
My grandfather was pretty much illiterate. He came from the Naples area in the first decade of the twentieth century as a 10 to 14 year old He busted his butt every day of his life. Back in the 1970s He would ask me to help write out checks. He could block print people’s names Never took a dime from the government.
You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to come here. Just productive and not on the state and not illegally
Here for 20 years, on welfare the whole time for herself and her children, CANNOT even read or write in Spanish, and THIS is held up as a "success story" by today's liberal Hillary-worshiping ABCNNBCBS news media?????
Trump doesn't work at the USCIS field offices. An army of Obama and Clinton voters are working there and they don't give a s**t as long as they've got cushy government jobs.
Trust me. I've dealt with them.
Ever been to the post office or DMV and looked around at the staff? USCIS is no different.
Mine too. As far as the instant matter goes how is having another welfare grabber good for the country?
Why not just let dogs and cats vote?
It saddens me sometimes. Never before in history has so much knowldge been freely available to pretty much the entire population of the world. Only a small percentage of the population makes use of this unimaginable gift. It is incomprehensible to me how some people stay willfully ignorant. These are generally the same people who complain about access to education.
I just felt my wallet get a little bit lighter.
It would be very interesting to know how much it costs to print ballots in multiple languages. Taking the civics questions in another language is ridiculous. A person can memorize all the answers without understanding what any of them mean especially about rights and freedoms. When there are multiple answers, such as the freedoms protected by the first Amendment, you only have to know one or two.
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