Fourth of July Across the First District

On July 4th, I had the honor of joining two very special traditions here in New Hampshire: marching in the Merrimack parade with my family and attending Portsmouth’s annual naturalization ceremony.

At the parade, we waved to families dressed in red, white, and blue, high-fived kids, handed out candy, and took in the smiles of so many. It was clear that people came to the parade for a multitude of reasons,  the fire trucks, the clowns, the tradition, the community. Whatever brought them out, we were together. That mattered.

And at the naturalization ceremony earlier that morning, I watched as dozens of people from 46 different countries became American citizens. It was especially moving when the mayor invited all the children to come to the front of the tent to lead the Pledge of Allegiance. For a few powerful minutes, our youngest citizens and our newest citizens stood side-by-side and pledged allegiance to liberty and justice for all. I’ll never forget it.

One woman who became a citizen that morning was from the Marshall Islands — the place where I lived and taught for three years after college and the focus of my PhD work. After the ceremony, I walked up to her and congratulated her in Marshallese. She smiled, and later she sent me an email that said, “Thank you for coming up to me after the naturalization ceremony and speaking Marshallese to me. You made me feel welcome.”

Moments like that remind me why I’m running to represent New Hampshire’s First District in Congress. Because democracy isn’t just a project we inherit — it’s something we have to build and maintain together, every single day.

Whether it’s at a parade or a protest, a voting booth or a city hall meeting, our job as citizens is to show up. For each other. For the people who don’t yet feel welcome, safe, and heard in this country. To make the promise of liberty and justice real for all of us.