by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
Attorney Fraz Ahmed is living the American dream. So is his sister and brother. All thanks to a decision their father made in 1983.
Ahmed was just 3 when his father packed up the family, left Pakistan and immigrated to the United States. Eventually, the American dream Ahmed’s father talked of became reality.
Thursday, Ahmed relayed his family’s story to 49 new citizens of the United States, all of whom sought residency for their own particular reasons. All of whom renounced their previous allegiances for other reasons. But, for 45 minutes at the United States Courthouse under the guidance of Senior Judge Harvey Schlesinger, everyone was on the same page.
Schlesinger, who has been presiding over naturalization ceremonies for 40 years, said the 40 name change requests represent the most he can ever remember, and that dates back to ceremonies that included 200-300 people.
“Each of you have entered this courtroom a citizen of a foreign nation and each of you will leave a citizen of the United States,” said Schlesinger of the group that represented 25 countries.
Schlesinger told the new citizens the beauty of the U.S. is the right to be different, a right that is — for the most part — respected.
“On a personal note, you have my sincerest wishes that your life as a citizen of the United States brings the happiness and satisfaction which you see before you today,” he said.
That success and happiness is exemplified by Ahmed, who graduated from the University of Pittsburgh, Florida Coastal School of Law and is now an attorney with Kubicki Draper on the Southbank. Today, life may be good. But for Ahmed, the path to the American dream covered most of the country and was filled with ups and downs.
“It was not an easy decision,” he said of the one his father made to leave Pakistan and everything and everyone the family knew. “My mother didn’t know English, but my father had been here before and knew the opportunities for my mother and the kids.”
After arriving in California, the Ahmed family settled in Pennsylvania. His father opened a business, but thanks to bad decisions made by a partner, the business went bankrupt.
“We were basically left with nothing,” said Ahmed, explaining the next decision was to either return to Pakistan or stay and try again.
“My parents wanted a better life for their kids. That was their ultimate goal,” he said. “We struggled for several years. But, my father got a job with a bank and was very successful and was able to support us the way he wanted to.
“My mother learned English and went to work for a big department store and now she wants to open her own business.”
In addition to Ahmed, his brother and sister have fared well professionally.
“My sister is a doctor in New York City and my brother works for one of the most successful pharmaceutical companies in the world,” said Ahmed, who offered encouragement to the new citizens. “This country belongs to you now as much as it does anybody else.”
After the ceremony, which included a greeting from President Bush, the new citizens were presented their citizenship papers, American flags, a copy of the Bill of Rights and an opportunity to register to vote.
Larry McGuire, administrative assistant for the Department of Homeland Security/U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, said on average it takes about one year for resident-aliens to go from filling out the application to taking the oath as a citizen. He said the Jacksonville office is one of the better offices in the country, but there are sometimes delays.