Senyorpomidor777

My mother had her naturalization interview today at the New York office. I became a U.S. citizen through marriage, and I invited my mother to the United States because it was unsafe for her to remain in Ukraine. She has witnessed civilian casualties and suffers from PTSD due to the war. She is a Ukrainian citizen and speaks only Russian. Due to a lifelong learning condition, she was unable to learn Ukrainian despite living most of her life in Ukraine. When we arrived for the interview, the officer initially did not seem aware that we had submitted Form N-648. I informed her that we had submitted the original and that I had a copy with me if needed. During her time in the U.S. as a green card holder, my mother’s only trip outside the country was a brief 13-day visit to Russia to see her mother, and I accompanied her. The officer asked if I was fluent in both Russian and English and whether I could translate. When I confirmed that I could, the officer stated that if she felt I was providing my mother with answers, I would be escorted out, and they would use their interpreter. The first question was whether my mother had traveled outside the U.S. and when. I responded that she had traveled with me to Russia, but I did not remember the exact dates, though they were documented in her passport and on the application. The officer then stated that she needed to hear the answer directly from my mother. The officer didn't let me ask my mom this question and proceeded to call an interpreter over the phone. This is fine with me because i did not want to have any bias since we are family members. For her naturalization process, a psychiatrist completed Form N-648, certifying that her learning disability and PTSD prevent her from learning a new language. However, from the beginning of the interview, the officer, whose last name was Green, appeared somewhat unfriendly. When my mother leaned toward the phone to better hear the interpreter, the officer seemed irritated and asked why she was doing so. The interpreter had difficulty hearing and initially did not translate this question. The officer repeated the request for translation, but the interpreter continued to struggle with the audio and did not convey it right away. Throughout the interview, the interpreter frequently had trouble understanding the officer and had to ask for clarification multiple times. In the end, the officer stated that Form N-648 was insufficient, specifically pointing out that the psychiatrist had not indicated the language in which the evaluation was conducted—despite the form clearly stating that the psychiatrist is a Russian speaker. This interview process was very unfortunate.