Dozens of prospective U.S. citizens were turned away from a naturalization ceremony in Indianapolis this week.

INDIANAPOLIS — Thirty-eight out of 100 prospective citizens were apparently “turned away at the door” during an Indianapolis naturalization ceremony on Tuesday.

Seldom does a naturalization ceremony end in questions. Typically, the people who are invited to take an oath to America have taken all the tests, gone through the vetting process and waited years to make it to this point. But on Tuesday, Dec. 9, that invitation was revoked for some.

Marion County Clerk Kate Sweeney Bell (D-Indianapolis) says dozens of people were turned away during the sign-in process at a “We the People” event in Union Station. She says her office routinely attends the events to get the country’s newest citizens registered to vote.

“They’ve taken the tests, they’ve learned our history. They have a rudimentary understanding of the language,” Bell said. “We closed our door to them after we told them, ‘Yes, you are welcome’… I hope they try again.”


The turn-aways unfold against the backdrop of expanded federal immigration policies under the Trump administration. Immigration applications have been halted for people from dozens of counties, including Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Restricted access applies to people from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.

“It’s wrong … every part of that is wrong,” Bell said. 

Across the country, immigrants arriving at naturalization ceremonies are increasingly being told that their countries of origin now place their status in jeopardy. 

It’s unclear if what happened at the ceremony in Indianapolis is for the same reason, but it’s something Exodus Refugee immigration attorney Rachel VanTyle says is a growing concern for her clients. 

“By the time somebody is ready to be a citizen, they have done all the steps and done it the right way,” VanTyle said. “They’re already usually legal permanent residents, but they’re trying to get to the finish line of immigration, which is citizenship.”

VanTyle says for now, there is a limited scope for what she can do as an attorney and an advocate.

“We’d have to see how long the delay is before they’re able to reschedule the oath ceremony,” VanTyle said. “Certainly, there’s maybe some federal actions that could be taken, but at this point, I’m not prepared to take on those until we have a little bit more guidance or maybe some more data points about how often this is happening and which people are being targeted.”


VanTyle still urges anyone with questions or concerns to contact an immigration attorney for guidance.

“You can find a list of those online, make sure they’re licensed to practice law, or visit one of the local nonprofits and see if we can help you kind of navigate the situation and give you some advice about what’s been going on,” VanTyle said.

As for Bell, she says she hopes a pathway opens up for the once-prospective U.S. citizens.

“I hope that they do not end up deported because everything that has been asked of these potential new citizens, they’ve done,” Bell said. “It is really, really difficult to become a citizen of this country, and now that their home countries are facing some sort of unfavored nation status.”

13News reached out to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for clarification on why the individuals were turned away and whether the affected applicants will be rescheduled. 

The Department of Homeland Security sent the following statement to 13News: 

“USCIS has paused all adjudications for aliens from high-risk countries while USCIS works to ensure that all aliens from these countries are vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible. The pause will allow for a comprehensive examination of all pending benefit requests for aliens from the designated high-risk countries. The safety of the American people always comes first.”