KEENE, CA — Secretary of State Alex Padilla will deliver the keynote speech at a special U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) naturalization ceremony at the Cesar E. Chavez National Monument in Keene, CA tomorrow, March 31. Secretary Padilla will be encouraging the new citizens to register to vote and stressing the importance of participating in all elections.
March 31 marks Cesar Chavez Day in California—a state holiday. Cesar Chavez, who was born on March 31, 1927, was a civil rights leader who co-founded the United Farm Workers Union.
Secretary Padilla’s parents emigrated from Mexico and raised their family in the working class community of Pacoima, California. His father worked as a short order cook and his mother cleaned houses. Padilla attended local public schools and went on to graduate from Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering. Padilla served as a Los Angeles City Council member from 1999 to 2006 and as a California State Senator from 2006 to 2014 before being sworn in as Secretary of State on January 5, 2015.
USCIS is asking new citizens and their families and friends to share the experience and photos at their ceremonies via Twitter using the hashtag #newUScitizen.