22-05-2025
At Naturalization ceremony, a high schooler's words resonate with 200 New Americans
'The United States doesn't guarantee happiness or wealth,' he continued. 'But it guarantees freedom and opportunity—nothing more and nothing less.'
Then, in a shift from official procedure to personal reflection, the ceremony turned to its special speaker: a local high school student whose remarks offered a deeply personal take on the meaning of citizenship.
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Michael Barbalat, a rising senior at Newton North High School, addressed the room as the guest speaker. Barbalat, whose parents fled the Soviet Union in 1991 has spent the past two years interviewing immigrants and refugees for a personal project he calls
The American Mosaic
.
'I've noticed, especially in my school, it has become almost popular to view America, not solely, but primarily, through a negative lens and see its shortcomings,' Barbalat said. 'But I think that through immigrant perspectives, we see all the beauty and power and hope that America represents to so many.'
The ceremony came at a time when the
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The new citizens hailed from 54 countries across Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, South America, and the Caribbean. Before ending the ceremony, Judge Gorton asked them to stand by continent, illustrating the diversity that, as Gorton noted, 'really does make us the melting pot of the world.'
In an interview before his speech, Barbalat said he's documented more than 100 stories so far. His subjects, he said, often spoke of economic mobility, personal safety, and a belief that in America, unlike the countries they left behind.
A Cuban refugee whose father was on Fidel Castro's kill list, told him, 'you are the only one that stops yourself. No one will stop you.' That quote, he said, captures the spirit of his project. The idea of America is not tied to one race or religion, 'It's a mosaic.'
One of those stories belonged to Sadhak Sengupta, who waited 23 years to become a citizen before attending today's ceremony. Originally from India, he came to the United States in 2002 for graduate studies and now lives in Sharon.
'I've been waiting for this day like forever,' Sengupta said. 'Becoming a citizen means a lot — I came here for the same reason everyone does: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.'
Others had waited even longer. Hector Monzon, 55, of Everett, arrived from Guatemala in 1987.
'All my family is here,' he said. 'And now I'm finally an American.'
Some came to the US as teenagers and had to adjust to a new language, a new school system, and the emotional toll of leaving friends behind — like Julia Yeon, who arrived from South Korea at age 14.
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'It was, like, a whole different thing,' said Yeon, 'but now that I think about it, I'm grateful that my parents actually moved here, where there are more new opportunities.'
The themes of freedom, safety, and opportunity echoed across many of the day's conversations.
'I like that you can go for a demonstration and not be caught and put to jail,' said Anna Beken, a Russian-born mother who received her citizenship Thursday, describing why she's grateful for her child to be American. 'I like that I feel safe here. I like that people are very friendly here.'
In the hallway outside the ceremony room, volunteers with the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition helped the new Americans fill out voter registration forms as they streamed out with their freshly printed certificates of naturalization in hand.
Mabel Amar, a MIRA volunteer and Chinese American who immigrated to the United States in 1963, said voting is at the heart of what it means to be American.
'Why do we want to be Americans? To vote, right?' she said. 'How can I be American and not vote?'
Amar, whose family 'caught the last train' to Hong Kong in 1949, the year the Communist Party took powerq, said civic disengagement threatens the very freedom and opportunity immigrants like her come to the United States seeking.
'Being a citizen, you need to vote. Otherwise, what is the point of this country?' said Amar. ''I don't vote, I don't care about politics'—then why are you here?'
Nathan Metcalf can be reached at
