Citizen U.S.A.

Fellow Americans: If the dysfunctional circus of Washington, DC, is getting you down, let me suggest an hour’s worth of relief: an HBO documentary film called Citizen U.S.A.

Filmmaker Alexandra Pelosi visited citizenship-induction ceremonies in all fifty states, interviewing new citizens. Some originally came as refugees, some snuck in and later got amnesty, some were students, and some were standard immigrants. The lucky ones were pursuing happiness. Many, especially women, were pursuing more basic needs like living in safety, speaking freely, or being able to work to support themselves. You will feel good about what America has done for them, as well as what they are doing for America.

The stars include New York City coffee cart guys from Afghanistan, a Buddhist monk in Utah, a nuclear scientist at Los Alamos National Lab, a Nigerian paralympics athlete in Kentucky, Iraqi refugees transplanted to Nebraska, and a Mulsim mother with a dream to take a cruise to Alaska. (Most of these descriptions came from the film’s synopsis at the HBO site. See also the trailer on YouTube.)

Citizen U.S.A. is currently available on Comcast’s On Demand service, but you need to be an HBO subscriber. I assume the film will appear soon on Netflix and other venues. Be on the lookout.