LOS ANGELES, CA --
Just days before President Donald Trump was sworn-in as the commander in chief, 5,000 people were sworn-in as U.S. citizens at the Los Angeles Convention Center.The new citizens represented more than 120 countries. For many, it was a long time coming and for others, it couldn't happen soon enough.
"I just wanted to make sure that I would get my citizenship before Trump became the president," Ammar Al-Masri said on Wednesday. "To put my hand here and feel it and to be so proud, it happened today."
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"I felt tears well up in my eyes. It's just really special and I feel it's just a really great privilege to become a citizen," Mary Charlotte Nelson shared.
A staple of Trump's campaign centered around immigration reform and many immigrants in the U.S. expressed fear of mass deportations.
Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck stated back in November