Nearly 200 become naturalized citizens in Wrigley Field ceremony in honor of 4th of July

Gov. Pritzker attending event

ByABC 7 Chicago Digital Team WLS logo
Friday, July 2, 2021
Nearly 200 become naturalized citizens in Wrigley Field ceremony
This is the first time Wrigley Field has been used for a naturalization ceremony.

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Almost 200 people from 45 countries became naturalized citizens Friday morning in an event at Wrigley Field.

Gov. JB Pritzker attended the 11 a.m. event, in which 175 became U.S. citizens, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois said in a news release Friday morning.

District Judge John Z. Lee administered the Oath of Allegiance. The ceremony was held in honor of Independence Day.

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This was the first time Wrigley Field has been used for a naturalization ceremony.

USCIS naturalized approximately 625,000 people in fiscal year 2020, the agency said.

More than seven million people have applied online for immigration benefits. To file online, applicants must first create a USCIS online account at https://myaccount.uscis.gov/users/sign_up.